A Look Back at Property & Casualty Insurance Stocks’ Q4 Earnings: First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) Vs The Rest Of The Pack
Earnings results often indicate what direction a company will take in the months ahead. With Q4 behind us, let’s have a look at First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) and its peers.
Property & Casualty (P&C) insurers protect individuals and businesses against financial loss from damage to property or from legal liability. This is a cyclical industry, and the sector benefits when there is ‘hard market’, characterized by strong premium rate increases that outpace loss and cost inflation, resulting in robust underwriting margins. The opposite is true in a ‘soft market’. Interest rates also matter, as they determine the yields earned on fixed-income portfolios. On the other hand, P&C insurers face a major secular headwind from the increasing frequency and severity of catastrophe losses due to climate change. Furthermore, the liability side of the business is pressured by ‘social inflation’—the trend of rising litigation costs and larger jury awards.
The 33 property & casualty insurance stocks we track reported a strong Q4. As a group, revenues beat analysts’ consensus estimates by 2.9%.
Amidst this news, share prices of the companies have had a rough stretch. On average, they are down 6.7% since the latest earnings results.
Tracing its roots back to 1889 when California was experiencing its first major real estate boom, First American Financial (NYSE:FAF) provides title insurance, settlement services, and risk solutions for residential and commercial real estate transactions across the United States and internationally.
First American Financial reported revenues of $2.05 billion, up 21.6% year on year. This print exceeded analysts’ expectations by 15.2%. Overall, it was an incredible quarter for the company with a beat of analysts’ EPS and revenue estimates.
First American Financial Total Revenue
The stock is down 7.6% since reporting and currently trades at $59.44.
Serving as a financial safety net for over $11 trillion in debt service payments since its founding in 2003, Assured Guaranty (NYSE:AGO) provides credit protection products that guarantee scheduled payments on municipal bonds, infrastructure projects, and structured finance obligations.
Assured Guaranty reported revenues of $277 million, up 77.6% year on year, outperforming analysts’ expectations by 39.6%. The business had an incredible quarter with a beat of analysts’ EPS and net premiums earned estimates.
Assured Guaranty Total Revenue
Assured Guaranty achieved the biggest analyst estimates beat and fastest revenue growth among its peers. Although it had a fine quarter compared its peers, the market seems unhappy with the results as the stock is down 6% since reporting. It currently trades at $81.45.
Founded during the Roaring Twenties in 1923 and weathering nearly a century of economic cycles, Old Republic International (NYSE:ORI) is a diversified insurance holding company that provides property, liability, title, and mortgage guaranty insurance through its various subsidiaries.
Old Republic International reported revenues of $2.36 billion, up 9.5% year on year, exceeding analysts’ expectations by 1.6%. Still, it was a softer quarter as it posted a significant miss of analysts’ EPS estimates and a significant miss of analysts’ book value per share estimates.
As expected, the stock is down 7% since the results and currently trades at $40.10.
Often referred to as a “mini Berkshire Hathaway” for its three-engine business model of insurance, investments, and wholly-owned businesses, Markel Group (NYSE:MKL) is a specialty insurance company that underwrites complex risks, manages investment portfolios, and owns a diverse collection of operating businesses.
Markel Group reported revenues of $4.01 billion, up 7.6% year on year. This print beat analysts’ expectations by 3.7%. It was an exceptional quarter as it also recorded a beat of analysts’ EPS estimates and a solid beat of analysts’ net premiums earned estimates.
The stock is down 7.6% since reporting and currently trades at $1,897.
With roots dating back to 1892 when it was founded by a Civil War veteran, Assurant (NYSE:AIZ) provides specialized insurance products and services that protect major consumer purchases like mobile devices, vehicles, homes, and appliances.
Assurant reported revenues of $3.35 billion, up 7.9% year on year. This number surpassed analysts’ expectations by 1.5%. Zooming out, it was a mixed quarter as it also logged a solid beat of analysts’ revenue estimates but a narrow beat of analysts’ EPS estimates.
The stock is down 8% since reporting and currently trades at $217.64.
Late in 2025 into early 2026, there was hand wringing around artificial intelligence. For software companies, the fear was that AI would erode pricing power and compress margins as new tools made it easier to replicate what once required expensive enterprise platforms. Crypto investors had their own version of the same anxiety: if AI agents could trade, allocate capital, and manage wallets autonomously, what exactly was the long-term value of today’s crypto infrastructure?
These concerns triggered a noticeable rotation away from these sectors and into safer havens. But markets rarely dwell on one narrative for long. Spring 2026 came, and the focus shifted abruptly from technological disruption to geopolitical risk. The US’ conflict with Iran became the dominant driver of market psychology, and when geopolitics takes center stage, the script changes quickly. Investors stop debating growth rates and start worrying about oil supply, inflation, and global stability.
Want to invest in winners with rock-solid fundamentals? Check out our Top 5 Growth Stocks and add them to your watchlist. These companies are poised for growth regardless of the political or macroeconomic climate.
StockStory’s analyst team — all seasoned professional investors — uses quantitative analysis and automation to deliver market-beating insights faster and with higher quality.
