EX-99.1 2 dex991.htm PRESS RELEASE Press Release

Exhibit 99.1

LOGO

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

UNITED INSURANCE HOLDINGS CORP. REPORTS 2008 FOURTH QUARTER

AND YEAR-END FINANCIAL RESULTS

Financial and Operational Highlights

 

   

Fourth quarter 2008 net income of $6.8 million, or $0.65 per diluted share

 

   

2008 net income of $33.4 million, or $3.08 per diluted share

 

   

Total number of homeowner policyholders increased 28% in 2008 to 80,400

 

   

At December 31, 2008, the Company had cash and cash equivalents of $31.7 million, total assets of $233.1 million and stockholders’ equity of $42.9 million

St. Petersburg, FL – March 31, 2009 – United Insurance Holdings Corp. (OTCBB: UIHC; UIHCW; UIHCU) (“United” or the “Company”), an underwriter of primarily homeowners insurance in the State of Florida, today announced financial results for its fourth quarter and year-ended December 31, 2008 (see attached tables).

United’s CEO, Don Cronin stated, “We are pleased to report strong results for the year ended December 31, 2008, a transformational year for our company. Recently, some competitors, including a large national carrier announced that they are leaving the state, and we feel that United has prudently and appropriately positioned itself for continued growth in Florida’s fragmented insurance market. We have been selective with our new business and policy assumption strategy, further strengthened relationships with our reinsurance partners, and maintained a steady investment plan. Let me discuss in detail some of the factors currently affecting United and the Florida insurance market:

 

   

United increased its total number of policyholders in 2008 by 28% to 80,400, which are diversified throughout the state and not concentrated in any one region. During 2008, United’s gross premium written was $141.6 million compared to $145.1 million in 2007. Although we experienced healthy policy growth during 2008, our total gross written premium declined in 2008 due to the wind mitigation credits that all property and casualty insurance companies were required to implement and provide to policyholders. During 2008, the effect of these credits lowered our average premium per policy by approximately 25% to $1,705 at December 31, 2008 compared to $2,260 at December 31, 2007. Given that the full effect of the wind mitigation credits has been applied to all of our policies during 2008, we do not anticipate that these credits will have a material affect on our gross written premium during 2009.

 

   

We continue to be selective in our assumption of insurance policies from Florida’s state run insurer, Citizens Property Insurance Corporation (“Citizens”). United was granted approval to assume up to 75,000 policies, but has remained disciplined in assuming only those policies that meet our strict underwriting standards. The Company assumed only 7,000 policies from Citizens during 2008, and 2,200 policies through the first quarter of 2009. The Company has no plans to assume any additional policies until after the 2009 hurricane season.

 

   

We continue to benefit from experience. United was founded in 1999, and has successfully remained profitable in each year of its operating history, including years of unprecedented storm activity in 2004 and 2005. This is especially important in establishing new and cultivating existing relationships with our reinsurance partners, who we believe prefer to support seasoned companies that are well-capitalized and have operated through difficult conditions.”


United Insurance Holdings Corp.

March 31, 2009

Nick Griffin, United’s CFO added, “The Company continues to maintain a conservative strategy emphasizing liquidity and preservation of invested assets. This strategy has served us well during the last ten years and most notably during the tumultuous last 12 months in the financial markets. Our net investment income and realized gains totaled $7.7 million for 2008, compared to $8.1 million for 2007 with a similarly sized portfolio of assets and cash equivalents. Our investments consist mainly of US treasuries, government agencies, high-quality corporate debt in non-financial sectors and money market instruments. We feel that this asset base and our conservative approach, along with our historically strong cash flow from operations positions United for a successful future. We expect that this will not only continue to provide us with the opportunity to gain market share organically, but potentially capitalize on acquisition opportunities.”

2008 Fourth Quarter Financial Review

Gross written premium increased 27.5% to $34.7 million for the three months ended December 31, 2008, compared to $27.3 million for the three months ended December 31, 2007, as the result of continued new business and policies assumed from Citizens. For the fourth quarter of 2008, losses and loss adjustment expenses (“LAE”) were $3.1 million, compared to $7.2 million for the three months ended December 31, 2007. The decrease is primarily due to a reduction in loss reserves as a result of favorable loss development on current and prior year claims. The Company attributes this favorable loss development to our effective in-house claims staff and to our conservative loss reserving practices.

Net income for the fourth quarter of 2008 was $6.8 million, or $0.65 per diluted share, compared to net income of $7.9 million, or $0.67 per diluted share, for the quarter ended December 31, 2007.

2008 Year End Financial Review

Gross written premium decreased 2.4% to $141.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2008, compared to $145.1 million for the prior year. During 2008 and 2007, the Company received a bonus from Citizens for assuming and retaining policies during 2004 and 2005. This policy assumption bonus, which includes interest income earned on the bonus amounts, was $6.5 million in 2008 compared to $13.6 million in 2007. Since Citizens no longer provides such a bonus, the Company does not expect to receive bonuses related to policies assumed in current or future years. Losses and LAE incurred in 2008 was $28.1 million compared to $25.7 million in 2007. This change is primarily attributable to $3.3 million of incurred losses and LAE related to claims resulting from Tropical Storm Fay.

Net income for 2008 was $33.4 million, or $3.08 per diluted share, compared to net income of $39.6 million, or $3.37 per diluted share, for the year ended December 31, 2007. The Company also included a pro forma computation of its net income, which takes into account conversion of certain subsidiaries into C-Corporations for income tax purposes. For 2009, all United subsidiaries will be treated as C-Corporations for income tax purposes.

Balance Sheet Highlights

As of December 31, 2008, United’s cash and cash equivalents were $31.7 million; total investments were $126.2 million; total assets were $233.1 million; and stockholders’ equity of $42.9 million.

Conference Call

The Company will discuss these results in a conference call on Tuesday, March 31, 2009 at 11:00 a.m. EDT.

The dial-in numbers are:

(866) 861-6730 (US)

(706) 679-0882 (INTERNATIONAL)

 

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United Insurance Holdings Corp.

March 31, 2009

The conference call will also be broadcast live via the “Investor Relations” section of United’s website at www.upcic.com. Once at the “Investor Relations” section, interested parties should click on “Events & Presentations”. To listen to the live call, please go to the website at least 15 minutes early to register, download and install any necessary audio software. If you are unable to participate in the live call, the conference call will be archived and can be accessed for approximately 90 days.

About United Insurance Holdings Corp.

Founded in 1999, United Property and Casualty Insurance Company, a subsidiary of United Insurance Holdings Corp., underwrites primarily homeowners insurance in the state of Florida. From its headquarters in St. Petersburg, United’s team of dedicated employees manages a completely integrated insurance company, including sales, underwriting, policyholder service and claims. The Company distributes its homeowners, dwelling fire and flood products through over 200 agency groups and conducts business through four wholly-owned subsidiaries. Homeowners insurance constitutes the majority of United’s premiums and policies.

Forward Looking Statements

This press release may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 about United. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts. Such forward-looking statements, based upon the current beliefs and expectations of United or United’s management, are subject to risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ from the forward-looking statements. Please refer to the documents filed by United Insurance Holdings Corp. with the SEC, specifically the most recent report on Form 10-Q, and our registration statement on Form S-4, which identify important risk factors which could cause actual results to differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements. The information set forth herein should be read in light of such risks. United assumes no obligation to update the information contained in this press release.

### #### ###

 

CONTACT:   -OR-      INVESTOR RELATIONS:   
United Insurance Holdings Corp.        The Equity Group Inc.   
Nick Griffin        Adam Prior   
Chief Financial Officer        Vice President   
(727) 895-7737 / ngriffin@upcic.com        (212) 836-9606 / aprior@equityny.com

 

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United Insurance Holdings Corp.

March 31, 2009

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations

(Unaudited)

In thousands, except share and per share amounts

 

     Three months ended
December 31,
    Year ended
December 31,
 
     2008     2007     2008     2007  

REVENUE:

        

Gross premiums written

   $ 34,748     $ 27,253     $ 141,556     $ 145,050  

Gross premiums ceded

     (2,750 )     (967 )     (59,251 )     (58,511 )
                                

Net premiums written

     31,998       26,286       82,305       86,539  

Decrease (increase) in net unearned premiums

     (11,228 )     (3,127 )     (1,161 )     (1,181 )
                                

Net premiums earned

     20,770       23,159       81,144       85,358  

Net investment income

     1,583       1,815       6,632       7,751  

Net realized investment gains (losses)

     (40 )     409       1,116       322  

Commission and fees

     748       326       2,778       2,414  

Policy assumption bonus

     51       1,981       6,493       13,556  

Other revenue

     568       543       2,899       3,200  
                                

Total revenue

     23,680       28,233       101,062       112,601  
                                

EXPENSES:

        

Losses and loss adjustment expenses

     3,089       7,211       28,063       25,662  

Policy acquisition costs

     4,438       3,971       17,616       17,022  

Operating and underwriting expenses

     1,922       4,716       6,460       9,404  

Salaries and wages

     1,131       985       3,466       2,792  

General and administrative expenses

     1,311       99       3,607       2,078  

Interest expense

     848       714       2,811       6,078  
                                

Total expenses

     12,739       17,696       62,023       63,036  
                                

Income before other income (expense)

     10,941       10,537       39,039       49,565  

Other income and (expenses)

     —         (1,626 )     2,564       (1,626 )
                                

Income before income taxes

     10,941       8,911       41,603       47,939  

Provision for income taxes

     4,092       1,012       8,184       8,297  
                                

Net income

   $ 6,849     $ 7,899     $ 33,419     $ 39,642  
                                

Weighted average shares outstanding

        

Basic

     10,548,932       10,548,932       10,548,932       10,548,932  
                                

Diluted

     10,548,932       11,775,088       10,854,743       11,775,088  
                                

Earnings per share

        

Basic

   $ 0.65     $ 0.75     $ 3.17     $ 3.76  
                                

Diluted

   $ 0.65     $ 0.67     $ 3.08     $ 3.37  
                                

PRO FORMA COMPUTATION OF INCOME TAXES FOR ALL ENTITIES FOR ALL HISTORICAL PERIODS PRIOR TO THE MERGER (Unaudited):

  

 

Historical income before income taxes

     $ 8,911     $ 41,603     $ 47,939  

Pro forma provision for income taxes

       3,437       16,048       18,492  
                          

Pro forma net income

     $ 5,474     $ 25,555     $ 29,447  
                          

Pro forma earnings per share

        

Basic

     $ 0.52     $ 2.42     $ 2.79  
                          

Diluted

     $ 0.46     $ 2.35     $ 2.50  
                          

 

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United Insurance Holdings Corp.

March 31, 2009

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

(Unaudited)

In thousands, except share and par value amounts

 

     December 31,
   2008     2007

ASSETS

    

Investments available for sale, at fair value:

    

Fixed maturities

   $ 115,332     $ 107,410

Equity securities

     10,586       6,072

Other long-term investments

     300       300
              

Total investments

     126,218       113,782

Cash and cash equivalents

     31,689       56,852

Accrued investment income

     1,392       1,385

Premiums receivable, net

     10,216       9,966

Reinsurance recoverable on paid and unpaid losses

     22,604       16,816

Prepaid reinsurance premiums

     26,518       26,345

Deferred policy acquisition costs, net

     9,075       7,547

Property and equipment at cost, net

     294       108

Capitalized software, net

     1,232       —  

Deferred income tax assets, net

     2,744       4,733

Other assets

     1,139       4,892
              

Total Assets

   $ 233,121     $ 242,426
              

LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY

    

Liabilities:

    

Unpaid losses and loss adjustment expenses

     40,098       36,005

Unearned premiums

     74,384       73,051

Reinsurance payable

     16,694       10,852

Accrued tax distribution payable

     —         9,227

Advance premiums

     2,152       2,396

Accounts payable and accrued expenses

     12,871       13,858

Current portion of notes payable

     4,621       11,000

Shares subject to mandatory redemption

     —         2,564

Income taxes payable

     1,366       2,303

Other liabilities

     1,326       2,238

Long-term notes payable, net

     36,682       32,833
              

Total Liabilities

     190,194       196,327
              

Commitments and contingencies (Note 14)

     —         —  

Stockholders’ Equity:

    

Preferred stock, $0.0001 par value; 1,000,000 shares authorized; none issued or outstanding for 2008 and 2007

     —         —  

Common stock, $0.0001 par value; 50,000,000 shares authorized; 10,548,932 issued and outstanding for 2008 and 2007

     1       1

Additional paid-in capital

     —         7,463

Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)

     (1,490 )     744

Retained earnings

     44,416       37,891
              

Total Stockholders’ Equity

     42,927       46,099
              

Total Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity

   $ 233,121     $ 242,426
              

 

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