Covid-19: UNIQA revises forecast for 2020

21 April 2020 —
Austrian insurance group UNIQA informed that based on preliminary work on the result for the first quarter of 2020, the significant negative effects of COVID-19 on the capital markets in the first quarter of 2020 will have a negative impact, above all, on the investment result of UNIQA.

As a result, "UNIQA expects negative earnings before taxes in the low double-digit million euro range for the first quarter of 2020".

Thus, due to the high uncertainty regarding the overall economic and financial impact of COVID-19 in the further course of the year, the Austrian insurer "cannot maintain the forecast for the business year 2020, according to which the result from ordinary activities in 2020 will be approximately at the level of 2019. UNIQA therefore expects a possibly negative result before taxes for the full year 2020".

UNIQA noted that, despite the statements of EIOPA and Austrian FMA "a complete elimination of the dividend will not be proposed to the Annual Shareholders Meeting but a reduction of the planned dividend of 54c per share to 18c per share for the 2019 financial year".

The Austrian insurer informed that it plans not to distribute a dividend for the 2020 financial year. The bonus payments (STI) for the Executive Board for the 2020 financial year are cancelled. Due to the currently different priorities shaped by COVID-19, UNIQA Insurance Group AG will postpone the planned transfer of in-group services and their reinsurance business to UNIQA Osterreich Versicherungen AG. UNIQA Insurance Group AG will remain for the time being as a reinsurance company. The merger of UNIQA International AG and UNIQA Osterreich Versicherungen AG will take place according to plan.



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