Full Year 2022 Clearview Wealth Ltd Earnings Call SYDNEY, NSW Aug 24, 2022 (Thomson StreetEvents) -- Edited Transcript of ClearView Wealth Ltd earnings conference call or presentation Wednesday, August 24, 2022 at 12:00:00am GMT TEXT version of Transcript ================================================================================ Corporate Participants ================================================================================ * Athol Chiert ClearView Wealth Limited - CFO * Simon Swanson ClearView Wealth Limited - MD & Director ================================================================================ Conference Call Participants ================================================================================ * Glen Wellham MST Access Services Pty Limited - Financial Technology Analyst ================================================================================ Presentation -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Operator [1] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you for standing by, and welcome to the ClearView Wealth Limited Financial Year 2022 Results Call. (Operator Instructions) I would now like to hand the conference over to Mr. Simon Swanson, Managing Director. Please go ahead. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Simon Swanson, ClearView Wealth Limited - MD & Director [2] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Welcome to ClearView's FY '22 results conference call. Today, I'm joined by ClearView's Chief Financial Officer, Athol Chiert. I will start with a high-level summary of ClearView's full year result before handing over to Athol who will talk about the underlying performance of our Life Insurance and Wealth Management businesses. I will wrap up with some market observations and provide an update on ClearView's strategic review. There will be an opportunity to ask questions at the end. This morning, ClearView announced an underlying net profit after tax from continued operations of $26.4 million for the year ending the 30th of June 2022, up 22% on 2021, and a reported net profit after tax of $21.2 million, up 217% on 2021. This solid result reflected the strong performance of the Life Insurance business, which remains ClearView's main profit driver. In FY '22, group operating earnings after tax increased 22% to $28 million, underpinned by steady growth in in-force premiums and a positive claims and lapse experience performance. The Board also announced an FY '22 fully franked dividend, final dividend that is, of $0.02 per share, up 100% on the previous year. Page 5 provides a snapshot of ClearView's 2 segments, Life Insurance and Wealth Management. In November last year, we completed the sale of our Financial Advice businesses to Centrepoint Alliance. As part of the transaction, ClearView holds a 24.5% strategic equity interest in Centrepoint Alliance. In FY '22, our interest in Centrepoint Alliance contributed $0.5 million to the group's underlying net profit after tax. Page 6 provides a summary of our FY '22 result and key observations. Our solid performance in FY '22 reflects strong momentum in the business. In FY '22, gross revenue increased 7% to $330.2 million, new Life Insurance business increased 24% to $20.2 million and in-force premiums increased 7% to $311.4 million. ClearView is starting to benefit from its ongoing investment in people, products and technology. Last year, the business made significant progress along its transformation journey, successfully launching a new Life Insurance Policy Administration System and a new Life Insurance product series ClearView ClearChoice. This month, we also launched a series of Wealth Management portals, which are designed to drive greater customer and adviser engagement. ClearView significant and ongoing investment -- business transformation combined with improving industry performance, rising interest rates and the positive impact of structural changes will underpin the group's growth. I will now hand over to Athol to talk about our underlying segment results in further detail. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Athol Chiert, ClearView Wealth Limited - CFO [3] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you, Simon. A summary of the performance of ClearView's Life Insurance business is outlined on Slide 7. The continued improvement in our Life Insurance profitability in FY '22 was driven by the strong momentum in the business. This momentum and ClearView's positive outlook is fueled by firstly, a steady growth in gross premium income, up 8% to just under $300 million; secondly, the positive underlying claims and lapse performance of the business; then the launch of the ClearView ClearChoice product range at sustainable margins; significant ongoing investment in the business transformation; gradual repricing of the in-force portfolios; and finally, the upward movement in interest rates. In FY '22, some further changes were made to the underlying actuarial assumptions. These include the changes to the lump sum claims assumptions, resulting in an adverse $2.5 million post-tax impact and an allowance for long-COVID claims, resulting in a further adverse $2.1 million post-tax impact. Slide 8 provides a summary of ClearView's Wealth Management result. In FY '22, underlying net profit after tax decreased to a loss of $100,000. Funds under management fell 4% to $3.26 billion, and fee income decreased 4% to $29.9 million. This result reflects changes in the business mix and margins earned as work continues on simplifying and resetting the Wealth Management business. Part of that simplification process included the transfer of approximately 5,500 ClearView Pension Plan members, representing around $450 million of funds under management to the contemporary WealthFoundations Super and Pension Product. This move gave members access to better fees and investment options as well as more competitive fees. Looking ahead to FY '23, the Wealth Management fee income is likely to continue to be adversely impacted by the repricing of the traditional products and the transitioning of members to more contemporary solutions alongside changes in margin from the HUB24 transaction. These overall fee reductions are likely to be partially offset by a reduction in custody and asset management costs as well as great efficiencies as benefits from the group's transformation program start to flow through. A review of the Wealth Management business is currently underway to determine the best path forward for the business. Simon has already touched on the sale of ClearView's Financial Advice business to Centrepoint Alliance. Proceeds of the sale were $16.6 million, where ClearView now holding a 24.5% strategic stake in the business, which enables us to participate in Australia's advice industry via our stake in one of Australia's leading licensees while at the same time separating the product manufacturing and advice arms of our business. It has resulted in a simple ClearView with a sharper focus on life insurance and wealth management. On Slide 10, the balance sheet reflects net assets of $481.1 million or $0.745 per share and a net surplus capital position of $25.8 million prior to the declaration of the FY '22 cash dividend of $0.02 per share. The closure capital position now includes the uplift from the sale of the Financial Advice business. The balance sheet includes net cash and investments of $414 million. Overall, the rising interest rate environment is a net positive for business like ClearView, given its positive impact on investment returns and the lower discounted cost of future income protection claims. ClearView's investment portfolio is managed by PIMCO and is largely shorter duration with appropriate asset liability metric, and up in movement in interest rates, therefore, positively impacts underlying earnings. On Slide 11, the embedded value, there's a strong capital base and cash generation implicit in the embedded value of $605 million or $0.922 per share as at 30 June 2022. The EV calculations are now based on increased risk fee rate of 3.5%, up from 2% with an overall discount rate of 7.5% now adopted. The increase in the risk fee rate was a key driver in the EV movement between periods. I'll now hand back to Simon to talk about the key business highlights. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Simon Swanson, ClearView Wealth Limited - MD & Director [4] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Thank you, Athol. The next few slides detail the 5 key factors that we believe will underpin ClearView's medium- to long-term growth. Overall, the life insurance sector is fundamentally attractive. While it has faced challenges in recent years, the enduring relevance and importance of life insurance is undeniable, and there are favorable tailwinds on the horizon. Turning to Slide 14. A key appeal of the Australian life insurance industry is it is primarily focused on risk-only products with flexible contract structures that allow for repricing. Public policy settings, including compulsory superannuation, are also supported an underpinned demand. Historically, the life insurance market has grown at circa 10% per annum, although more recent growth has been relatively flat due largely to supply side of regulatory issues. While action taken to address these issues, ClearView believes the market is showing signs of revival, and we are well positioned to benefit from this rebound, particularly given our significant investment in products and technology over the past few years. On Slide 15, the industry is starting to see the benefits of APRA's IDII intervention and other regulatory changes. We've seen the phasing out of agreed value policies and a wave of new, more sustainable products hitting the market. Over time, the industry will continue to reprice or transition historical in-force portfolios to the new sustainable product suite, thereby driving further profitability improvements. On Slide 16, ClearView's investment transformation and our shift to focus on growth is starting to work. Over the past few years, during a period of disruption and change, ClearView ramped up its investment in business transformation and readiness for the expected market rebound. We have spent the last few years ensuring that the fundamentals are right in terms of our product, technology and service. We are now sharpening our focus on new business sales. We believe that the broader issues that have plagued the life insurance industry and adversely affected the profitability have been largely addressed, placing ClearView in a strong position to build on our track record in the IFA space and continue gaining much share. ClearView has established a diverse distribution network with just under 800 licensees representing over 4,000 financial advisers. Looking ahead, ClearView has actionable growth strategy to take advantage of the projected rebound in the life insurance market. Turning to Slide 19. The strategic review process, which commenced effectively in February this year is ongoing. Discussions are continuing with interested parties in relation to the acquisition of the share capital of the company. There are no assurances that the ClearView Board will decide to pursue any transaction nor would any transaction will result from the negotiation. On Slide 20, I'd like to make some general comments before sharing my thoughts on the medium-term outlook for the business and the broader industry. ClearView continues to successfully navigate the challenges of COVID-19 and ongoing structural and regulatory change. To date, the business has proven resilient to the health and economic impacts of COVID-19 and remains on track to meet its medium- to longer-term performance objective. We continue to monitor COVID-19 developments and take a prudent approach to capital management. The majority of our people splitting their workdays between the office and home, this shift to flexible work has not impacted our operation. Our robust infrastructure and business continuity systems have enabled ClearView to continue operating with little to no disruption to our customers and business partners. As the job market tightens and the battle for talent heats up, flexible working conditions have become a permanent part of our employee value proposition. This approach also aligns with our purpose to be a positive force for our staff, the community and the environment. This year, ClearView formalized its corporate social responsibility goals, including a commitment to minimizing our impact on the environment. I'm proud that ClearView recently gained certification from the Climate Active under the carbon neutral standards for organizations. In 2021, ClearView produced 1,735 tonnes of carbon emissions and offset all emissions by participating in projects in South Australia, New Caledonia, Borneo in Indonesia and Sumatra in Indonesia. We're also actively taking steps to reduce our carbon footprint, including moving to renewable electricity and navigating for carbon-conscious suppliers. Furthermore, by the end of 2022, 90% of all company fleet vehicles will be hybrid. Turning to Slide 21. In terms of the business outlook, Page 21 lists our key observations and initiatives. For FY '23, clear targets have been set for the continued growth of the business. Among our priorities is the ongoing development of our new Life Insurance platform, increasing ClearChoice's share of the IFA market and gradual repricing of the in-force portfolios. While we're all feeling the impact on inflation and the rising cost of living, this has not resulted in increase in lapse rates due to financial pressure. Positively, unemployment is at record lows. We are closely monitoring our in-force portfolios for sign of stress. We believe the Australian life insurance market remains fundamentally attractive and all signs point to improving profitability across the Life Insurance industry. On Slide 22, ClearView's strong FY '22 result reflects momentum in the Life Insurance business. ClearView has a strong balance sheet and capital base. All things being equal, the rising interest rate environment is favorable for the business and is positive for underlying earnings. I'll now hand back to the operator to take questions. ================================================================================ Questions and Answers -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Operator [1] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (Operator Instructions) So our first question will come from Glen Wellham of MST Financial. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Glen Wellham, MST Access Services Pty Limited - Financial Technology Analyst [2] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yes. Well done on the result. It looks like everything is coming together nicely. Just your shareholding in Centrepoint Alliance. It sounds like you're happy to just sit on that? Or is that something you may review potentially after the strategic review done of the Life Insurance business? Or what are your thoughts on that in terms of the long-term holding? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Simon Swanson, ClearView Wealth Limited - MD & Director [3] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- At this point, our long-term view, Glen, is to continue to be a holder of it. While our view is we need to stay close to the financial advice industry, the 24.5% stake allows us to participate in any potential roll-ups as they occur. So we are, as I think mentioned in the Chairman's letter in the annual report, supportive of Centrepoint Alliance and will continue to be so. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Glen Wellham, MST Access Services Pty Limited - Financial Technology Analyst [4] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Great. And just on lapses and your claims experience, obviously, positive in this result. Any guidance on what that could be going forward? And I suppose, in particular, I'm interested in the sort of rising inflation environment and the effect lapses going forward? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Simon Swanson, ClearView Wealth Limited - MD & Director [5] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yes. We've done a bit of work on that point, Glen. From a lapse perspective, there's a fair bit of capacity. And just to explain that a little bit. Obviously, the new product that's in the market is relatively cheaper. So that actually provides optionality for people if they feel as though their existing products more expensive. So we don't believe, unless unemployment increases dramatically, that be an increase in lapse rates generally. So as long as unemployment holds true and remembering the ClearView is really exposed to the cities rather than the hospitality and travel industry, I think we're in good shape from a lapse perspective in the future. With respect to claims that we have put away with some reserves around TBD claims and income protection just to be sure around long COVID, we don't believe there's a particular exposure there. The exposure in Europe and North America was mainly to the Delta strain, whereas Australia's issues have been primarily around Omicron. So we don't see that having a particular impact on claims in the future, and we'll continue to improve our claims processes as well. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Glen Wellham, MST Access Services Pty Limited - Financial Technology Analyst [6] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I suppose on that point, you haven't seen any uptick in morbidity given people haven't been -- having their regular health checks or anything like that. There's nothing in [the data] in Australia. I know that in the U.S., there's probably a little bit of an uptick in that area. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Simon Swanson, ClearView Wealth Limited - MD & Director [7] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yes, there is in the U.S., definitely, not in Australia as yet. Yes. I think we've done quite a detailed analysis around which part of that. So for example, if you -- from a heart attack or those kind of, when you go back and say what is trauma cover you for cancer, it covers you for stroke and heart attack. And in 2 or 3 of those categories, that's quite a key things you're really talking about cancer, and you're really talking about the screenings of certain things. So that's been allowed for in our COVID overlays and sort of the longer-term assumptions around the trauma plans. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Glen Wellham, MST Access Services Pty Limited - Financial Technology Analyst [8] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Great. And just one more question, if I may. It sounds like you're happy to keep holding the Wealth Management division. Hopefully, will swing back into profitability next year. But is that the case? I mean there is a review at the moment, but what are your thoughts around that? -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Simon Swanson, ClearView Wealth Limited - MD & Director [9] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yes. Look, we always like to do reviews of things, Glen, and the markets we choose to play in, and we're doing that for wealth management. There are opportunities in that, and we'll just go through the process and come out and announce it towards the half year results. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Operator [10] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (Operator Instructions) There are no further questions at this time. I'll now hand the call back to Mr. Swanson for closing remarks. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Simon Swanson, ClearView Wealth Limited - MD & Director [11] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- On behalf of Athol and I, thank you very much for joining us today, and we look forward to keeping you updated on what's going on at ClearView. Thank you. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Operator [12] -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- That does conclude our conference for today. Thank you for participating. You may now disconnect.