Admiral beats full-year EPS forecasts and outlines strategy to accelerate earnings growth

Admiral Group plc (LSE:ADM) reported full-year 2025 results on Thursday, delivering record earnings per share of 115.5 pence, around 3.4% above analyst forecasts.

Alongside the results, the insurer introduced a new strategy aimed at increasing earnings growth beyond the 7.6% compound annual growth rate achieved between 2020 and 2025.

Second-half performance largely met market expectations, with group profit before tax coming in about 1.8% ahead of consensus estimates.

The board declared a final dividend of 90 pence per share, slightly higher than the 89.3 pence anticipated by analysts. The payout includes an ordinary dividend of 72.8 pence and a special dividend of 17.2 pence.

Within its core UK motor insurance business, full-year profit before tax fell short of consensus by 1.5%. The division reported a combined ratio of 80.5%, compared with expectations of 78.7%, largely due to lower reserve releases of around 10%, below the previously guided range of 10% to 15%.

However, the current-year loss ratio came in stronger than expected at 72.8%, beating forecasts by 1.3 percentage points.

The UK Motor segment ended the year with 5.83 million policies in force, up from 5.75 million at the half-year stage and ahead of analyst expectations of 5.75 million.

Other parts of the group delivered stronger results. The UK Household business reported full-year profit before tax 26.5% above consensus. Meanwhile, the UK Travel and Pet division generated £7.9m in profit before tax, outperforming expectations that it would break even.

The Admiral Europe Insurance business also exceeded forecasts, reporting £6.6m in profit before tax compared with consensus estimates of £2m. Admiral Money, the group’s lending arm, delivered full-year profit before tax about 3.2% above expectations.

Looking ahead, the company expects policy volumes to continue increasing across the group and indicated that higher pricing across the UK motor insurance market will be necessary.

Admiral also provided its first estimate regarding the future adoption of autonomous vehicles, forecasting that self-driving cars could represent around 4% of the total vehicle fleet by 2035. Despite this shift, the insurer said it still expects UK motor insurance premiums to grow over the next two decades.