Triad Reports $55.2M Loss

A decline in incurred losses at Triad Guaranty Inc., Winston-Salem, N.C., led to a first quarter 2009 loss of $55.2 million ($3.68 per share), which is much improved over the fourth quarter 2008 net loss of $122.2 million ($8.16 per share) and first quarter 2008 net loss of $150.0 million ($10.09 per share). Net loss and loss adjustment expenses were $101.9 million for the first quarter of 2009, compared with $178.1 million for the fourth quarter of 2008 and $221.3 million for the first quarter 2009. The improvement is because Triad is seeing an increased benefit from captive reinsurance programs and stop loss provisions in the contracts for its modified pool insurance policies. These risk sharing structures returned $97.4 million in benefits to Triad, compared with $66.7 million in the fourth quarter 2008 and $20.1 million in the first quarter 2009. The company, currently in run-off, had total insurance in force of $60.5 billion at the end of the first quarter 2009, a drop of 3.4% from the end of last year. The results did not address the recent meteoric rise in Triad's common stock price, which went from a close of $0.33 per share on April 30 to $0.80 per share one day later and by May 12, up to $1.39 per share.