NIB has hiked its payout to shareholders after boosting full-year profit by 13 per cent but the health insurer says it’s wary of affordability issues gripping Australian households.
NIB’s net profit for the 12 months to June 30 rose to $149.8 million from $132.4 million as net premium revenue increased 8.2 per cent to $2.34 billion.
Total claims paid increased by 6.9 per cent to $1.8 billion.
Managing director Mark Fitzgibbon conceded a 2.1 per cent increase in net policyholders was “not a big number”, though likely to contrast with an “expected decline in hospital coverage across the industry as a whole”.
NIB chairman Steve Crane said the insurance sector had not been immune to the affordability challenges many households were confronting.
“And there’s no shortage of political and media commentary taking a swipe at our industry for not doing enough,” Mr Crane said in NIB’s annual report on Monday.
“We agree that there is more to be done to improve affordability, increase transparency and reduce unnecessary cost … to help curb rising premiums, significant out-of-pocket expenses and a diminishing value proposition for members.”
Mr Fitzgibbon said it had been a generally strong performance despite a year of “challenging market conditions”.
“On the back of actual claims growth, premiums continue to rise while household disposable incomes remain static and competition for discretionary consumer spending fierce,” Mr Fitzgibbon said.
He further turbulence had been generated by an expected change of federal government in May, with investor confidence “at an all-time low” in the face of a legislated two-year cap on premiums.
“It’s now history that the threat passed with the re-election of a coalition government but it served to reinforce just how vital it is for the industry to have a stronger voice in healthcare policy and work even harder at keeping premium growth as low as possible,” Mr Fitzgibbon said.
The company will pay a fully franked final dividend of 13 cents per share, up from 11 cents a year ago, for a full-year dividend of 23.0 cents.
NIB said its FY19 insurance margin of 7.3 per cent was likely to normalise towards longer-term averages of 5.0 per cent to 6.0 per cent, while it forecast a statutory operating profit of at least $180 million in FY20.
Operating profit in FY19 was $184.6 million.
Shares in NIB were worth $7.63 before trade on Monday, down nearly 7.0 per cent from a record high $8.20 three weeks ago but still more than 15 per cent higher than a year ago.
AAP
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