The Genworth Mortgage Insurance Australia Ltd (ASX: GMA) share price flew over 14% higher today to close the day at $2.95 a share.
Genworth Mortgage Insurance provides lenders mortgage insurance (LMI) in Australia. GMA currently offers three main LMI products: Standard LMI, Homebuyer Plus and Business Select/Low Doc.
Given there was no specific news out of the insurer today, let's take a closer look at its recent performance.
Genworth full-year earnings on the horizon
Genworth recently announced that its financial results for the full year of 2020 will be released prior to market opening this Friday 12 February 2021.
Looking at its most recent quarterly update, as of 30 September 2020, Genworth had over 31,000 repayment deferrals. This follows the May 2020 period which had over 50,000 active repayment deferrals as the coronavirus tightened its grip.
In the third-quarter earnings announcement, Genworth also advised that the company is providing support to its customers experiencing hardship by offering different payment options. This includes allowing loans to be restructured without arrears penalties, accepting interest-only payments, supporting loan consolidation, and offering extension options.
Genworth increased its third-quarter claims reserve by $47.1 million, which resulted in a loss ratio of 63.5%.
The net earned premium in the third quarter was $79.7 million, a 4.6% increase compared to 2019.
Continuing business in a challenging environment
Investors will be curious to learn about how repayment deferrals are continuing in the unprecedented business environment brought on by the coronavirus.
Speaking to this last quarter, Genworth Mortgage chief executive officer and managing director Pauline Blight-Johnston said:
Genworth continues to work closely with our lender customers to support Australian borrowers in these challenging times. Since the onset of the pandemic, our people have consistently demonstrated their resilience and adaptability, responding quickly to process home loan repayment deferrals and high volumes of new business."
Credit Suisse Holdings (Australia) seems confident in Genworth's ability to navigate the presently unpredictable space being caused by COVID. Credit Suisse recently became a substantial Genworth holder through the purchase of 21,196,035 shares.
On the current Genworth share price, the company has a market capitalisation of $1.1 billion.
