Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2020

Discontinued Operations and Disposal Groups [Abstract]

Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations

Sirius Group

On April 18, 2016, White Mountains completed the sale of Sirius Group to CMI. In connection with the sale, White Mountains indemnified Sirius Group against the loss of certain interest deductions. In late October 2018, the Swedish Administrative Court ruled against Sirius Group on its appeal of the Swedish Tax Agency’s denial of these interest deductions, which related to periods prior to the sale of Sirius Group to CMI. As a result, in 2018 White Mountains recorded a loss of $17.3 million within net (loss) gain on sale of discontinued operations reflecting the value of these interest deductions.

As of December 31, 2020 and 2019, White Mountains reported a liability of $18.7 million and $16.5 million. During 2020, the increase in the liability of $2.2 million is related to foreign currency translation and included within net loss on sale of discontinued operations. Sirius Group has appealed the decision to the Swedish Administrative Court of Appeal. See Note 18 — “Commitments and Contingencies”.

Other

As of December 31, 2017, White Mountains has classified its Guilford, Connecticut property, which consists of an office building and adjacent land, as held for sale. On August 20, 2020, the office building was sold for $2.3 million. For the twelve months ended December 31, 2020, White Mountains recognized $0.1 million of realized loss on the sale of the office building. As of December 31, 2020, the adjacent land has been measured at its estimated fair value, net of costs of disposal, of $0.7 million. As of December 31, 2019, the property was measured at its estimated fair value, net of costs of disposal, of $3.0 million.

As of December 31, 2020, assets held for sale also includes a corporate aircraft. The aircraft has been measured at its carrying value of $1.7 million, which is lower than its estimated fair value.

Earnings Per Share from Discontinued Operations

White Mountains calculates earnings per share using the two-class method, which allocates earnings between common and unvested restricted common shares. Both classes of shares participate equally in earnings on a per share basis. Basic earnings per share amounts are based on the weighted average number of common shares outstanding adjusted for unvested restricted common shares. Diluted earnings per share amounts are also impacted by the net effect of potentially dilutive common shares outstanding. The following table presents the Company’s computation of earnings per share for discontinued operations for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018:


	Year Ended December 31,
	2020		2019		2018
Basic and diluted earnings per share numerators (in millions):
Net income (loss) attributable to White Mountains’s common shareholders	$	708.7	$	414.5	$	(141.2)
Less: total income (loss) from continuing operations, net of tax	711.0		413.7		(124.0)
Net (loss) income from discontinued operations attributable to White Mountains’s common shareholders	(2.3)		.8		(17.2)
Allocation of (earnings) losses to participating restricted common shares (1)	—		—		.2
Basic and diluted (loss) earnings per share numerators	$	(2.3)	$	.8	$	(17.0)
Basic earnings per share denominators (in thousands):
Total average common shares outstanding during the period	3,122.2		3,181.6		3,382.5
Average unvested restricted common shares (3)	(40.8)		(40.5)		(40.1)
Basic earnings (loss) per share denominator	3,081.4		3,141.1		3,342.4
Diluted earnings per share denominator (in thousands):
Total average common shares outstanding during the period	3,122.2		3,181.6		3,382.5
Average unvested restricted common shares (3)	(40.8)		(40.5)		(40.1)

Diluted earnings (loss) per share denominator	3,081.4		3,141.1		3,342.4
Basic (loss) earnings per share (in dollars) - discontinued operations:	$	(.75)	$	.25	$	(5.09)
Diluted (loss) earnings per share (in dollars) - discontinued operations:	$	(.75)	$	.25	$	(5.09)

(1)Restricted shares issued by White Mountains contain dividend participation features, and therefore, are considered participating securities.

(2)Net earnings attributable to White Mountains’s common shareholders, net of restricted share amounts, is equal to undistributed earnings for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018.

(3)Restricted common shares outstanding vest either in equal annual installments or upon a stated date. See Note 10 — “Employee Share-Based Compensation Plans”.