Insurance giant Allianz reports 15% drop in net profit in Q3

Insurance giant Allianz said a "volatile financial market" contributed to a 15% drop in net income in the three months to September. Hit by outflows in asset management and declines in insurance, the Munich-based insurer also said that revenue was down to €27.5bn (£19.6bn) from €28.8bn (£20.6bn) one year ago.

Net income fell to €1.36bn (£974.9 million) from €1.61bn (£1.15bn) a year earlier, a drop of 15.4% that Allianz partially attributed to "one-off tax benefits in the year-earlier quarter". Nonetheless, chief financial officer Dieter Wemmer said they expected "the full year operating profit to grow and arrive in the upper end of our target range of €10bn (£7.16bn) to €10.8bn (£7.74bn.)"

"In a volatile financial market environment, Allianz's fundamentals remained at a solid level in all business segments in the third quarter," he said in a statement.

Although gross premiums written in the company's Property and Casualty insurance increased 2.4% to €11.25 bn (£8.1bn) in the third quarter, the operating profit was down 5% to €1.35bn (£967.8bn) in the third quarter "affected by lower investment and underwriting results," the company said in a statement.

Nonetheless, Mr Wemmer insisted "the overall development of the segment is on track."

In asset management net outflows totalled €14.8bn (£10.6bn), slowing from €47.4bn (£34bn) a year earlier. At US bond company Pimco, which Allianz is parent company to, net outflows were €16bn (£11.5bn) in the quarter.

"Net outflows at PIMCO nearly halved compared to the previous quarter and have reached the lowest quarterly level since the start of net outflows in the third quarter of 2013," said Mr Wemmer. "At Allianz Global Investors, third party net inflows continued for the eleventh consecutive quarter."