Sampo Oyj (LON:0HAG) reported what management described as “another strong year” in 2025, citing consistent execution, solid profitability and continued momentum in its private and SME insurance segments. On a like-for-like basis, the group delivered 8% growth and generated an underwriting profit of EUR 1.5 billion, supported by disciplined underwriting, a benign claims environment and continued efficiency gains.
Operating EPS for the year was EUR 0.50. The board proposed a regular dividend of EUR 0.36 per share, up 6% year-over-year. Management also used the call to announce an update to its capital distribution policy, emphasizing that the change affects the mix of returns between dividends and buybacks rather than the overall level of capital returned to shareholders.
Underwriting performance and segment trends
In SME, Sampo highlighted accelerating top-line momentum as customers adopt digital services, following patterns previously seen in retail. SME premiums grew 7% in 2025 (up from 5% in 2024 and 4% in 2023), and the group added more than 3,200 new commercial customers, predominantly SMEs, while maintaining “high and stable” retention.
In Private Nordic, Sampo reported approximately 9% like-for-like growth, with “solid performance” across major product lines. Personal insurance was a standout, growing 11% as the company added 30,000 new insured individuals in 2025. Thorsrud pointed to rising demand for services complementing public healthcare as supporting a positive outlook.
Digital sales reached an operational target of EUR 175 million one year ahead of schedule. Management said digital capabilities and scale also supported partnership channels, with all major partnerships renewed across markets in 2025, including in Sweden’s mobility sector. Sampo also said it secured four new mobility agreements in Denmark.
In Private UK, Sampo delivered 13% like-for-like premium growth with a 16% increase in policy count, but management stressed that motor pricing softened through the year. The company said it scaled back activity in line with market pricing trends, contributing to slower policy growth in the second half. Sampo reiterated its UK combined ratio ambition of 88%–90% and said that, in a softer pricing environment, it expects to operate toward the upper end of that range.
Integration synergies and Pan-Nordic platform progress
2025 marked the first year of delivering synergies from integrating Topdanmark into Sampo’s Pan-Nordic platform. The group reported EUR 37 million of run-rate synergies by the end of 2025, ahead of the original EUR 24 million target for the year, which management said was “largely due to timing effects.” Sampo reiterated its commitment to the EUR 140 million synergy target for 2028 and said it would provide an update on synergy phasing in connection with its Q1 results.
Investment income, solvency, and NOBA-related gains
Group CFO Lars Kufall Beck said 2025 investment income was strong, reflecting returns across both fixed income and equities. Fixed income continued to provide stable interest income, though slightly down year-over-year, and he said a small further reduction in 2026 is expected if interest rates do not swing materially because the mark-to-market yield remains slightly below the running yield.
The largest driver of investment income in 2025 was Sampo’s stake in NOBA. Following NOBA’s IPO, Sampo recorded a EUR 540 million gain, including EUR 173 million in the fourth quarter. Beyond NOBA, management said equities in the portfolio performed well. Looking to 2026, Beck said Sampo is cautious about deploying new money due to tight spreads, high equity valuations and geopolitical uncertainty.
Sampo’s solvency stood at 174% at year-end. Beck said solvency was supported by a higher symmetric adjustment versus a year ago and anticipated benefits from further NOBA sell-downs and a Danish partial internal model change. He said Sampo generated EUR 1.5 billion of deployable capital in 2025, bringing cumulative capital generation in the strategic period to date to EUR 3.5 billion, putting the group “well on track” to exceed its more than EUR 5.5 billion target for 2024–2026.
On the Danish partial internal model, management said the regulatory process has taken longer than expected, but the estimated EUR 60 million–EUR 90 million SCR benefit remains unchanged. On NOBA, Beck said Sampo is currently in a lockup but will look for opportunities to sell down further if valuation is attractive.
Updated distribution policy and 2026 outlook
Sampo announced an update to its distribution policy aimed at providing “an attractive mix” of dividends and share buybacks. Beck said the company still expects, in a normal year, to return around 90% of its operating result to shareholders through dividends and buybacks. The key change is lowering the dividend payout ratio floor from 70% to 60%, while maintaining a “reliable and progressive” dividend. Management said it aims to grow the regular dividend broadly in line with the EUR 0.02 annual increase seen since 2020 and aims to keep dividend per share stable in a “bad year.”
Regarding timing, Beck said the company expects to revert on buybacks in connection with Q1 results in May, allowing potential buybacks after the ex-dividend period. He also noted that, based on prior guidance, there was EUR 350 million remaining to distribute via buybacks funded by disposals after the latest buyback, within the “up to EUR 500 million” framework described at the capital markets day.
For 2026, Thorsrud guided to insurance revenue of EUR 9.5–EUR 9.8 billion, corresponding to 5%–8% growth, and an underwriting result of EUR 1,485–EUR 1,600 million. He said the planned 40 basis point improvement in the Nordic operating cost ratio is expected to be the main driver of profitability. The lower end of the underwriting result range reflects uncertainty related to weather, including a “somewhat harsh winter to date” and potential spillover effects from Storm Johannes late in 2026, while the upper end would assume more favorable weather and large-claims experience.
On pricing, management noted Norway continues to see higher price increases than other Nordic countries, though moderating slightly in recent quarters, and said Nordic pricing remains “somewhat elevated.” In the UK, management described pricing declines as more pronounced in the first half of 2025, followed by a largely sideways trend in the second half, a pattern it said continued into early 2026.
During Q&A, Sampo also discussed autonomous vehicles, arguing that motor insurance remains operationally “highly physical” due to repair and service networks, and that increasing vehicle technology has tended to raise repair severity even as safety improves. Management said it views the evolving motor landscape as an opportunity that may favor large insurers with data and capabilities to price and manage complexity.
About Sampo Oyj (LON:0HAG)
Sampo Oyj, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of non-life insurance products and services in Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, and the United Kingdom. The company operates through If, Topdanmark, Hastings, Mandatum, and Holding segments. It offers property, casualty, liability, accident, sickness, household, homeowner, motor, travel, marine, aviation, transport, forest, livestock, health, workers compensation, car, van, and bike insurance services, as well as reinsurance services.
