Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) on Friday posted a 3.8% fall in second-quarter profit as it paid out higher benefits. However, the new business margins for the half-year expanded.
LIC’s profit after tax fell to 76.21 billion rupees ($903.6 million) for the quarter ended September from 79.25 billion rupees a year earlier.
The net premium income rose 11.6% to 1.20 trillion rupees but the net benefits paid by the insurer to policyholders climbed 17% to 975.62 billion rupees during the quarter.
LIC’s solvency ratio, the measure of an insurer’s ability to meet its long-term debt obligations, rose to 1.98 during the quarter from 1.90 a year earlier.
Its net value of new business (VNB), which measures expected profit from new premiums, jumped 37.7% year-over-year for the April-September period.
The VNB margin for the period rose to 16.2% from 14.6% a year ago.
Insurer’s Gross Non-Performing Assets (GNPA) was reported at 1.72% during the second quarter against 1.95 percent quarter-on-quarter.
It reported a 2.43% GMPA in the same period a year ago.
Within the individual business, the share of Par products on an APE basis was 73.69% (Rs 13,385 crore), and the balance of 26.31% (Rs 4,778 crore) was from non-par products.
The individual non-par APE increased to Rs 4,778 crore in the first half of the current fiscal, up by over 200% YoY.
Shares of LIC traded under pressure in Friday’s trade. The counter settled in the red at Rs 915.55 per share on the NSE, down 1.52%.