Accelerant Q2 2026 Earnings: Exchange Premium Rises 23%

Accelerant Holdings (NYSE: ARX) reported Q2 2026 total revenue of $356.9 million for the three months ended June 30, up about 63% year over year, while diluted EPS increased to $0.36 from $0.04. Exchange Written Premium rose 23% to $1.32 billion, and adjusted EBITDA increased to $93.1 million with a 30.6% margin. GAAP results benefited from $53.0 million of investment gains, while first-half operating cash flow turned negative and the pending Thoma Bravo acquisition led Accelerant to withhold forward guidance.

Core earnings data

Accelerant’s operating results grew more moderately than its GAAP revenue and net income. Non-GAAP operating revenue, which excludes realized and unrealized investment gains, increased about 39% to $303.9 million, compared with the roughly 63% increase in total revenue.

Adjusted net income and adjusted EPS more than doubled, while adjusted EBITDA margin expanded by 1.6 percentage points. Accelerant recast its 2025 non-GAAP results to reflect its updated definitions, which now exclude investment gains and losses.

Business and segment performance

Third-party insurers represented a much larger portion of activity on the Accelerant Risk Exchange. Third-Party Direct Written Premium increased to 47% of Exchange Written Premium from 27%, while Accelerant Direct Written Premium declined to 53% from 73%. Accelerant-retained Exchange Premium also rose to 13% from 6%.

This mix shift was reflected in commission revenue: direct commission income from unaffiliated entities increased to $92.5 million from $34.2 million, while ceding commission income fell to $75.1 million from $101.6 million. Management said fee-based operating revenue and adjusted EBITDA—defined as consolidated results excluding underwriting—grew 56% and 91%, respectively.

Exchange Services remained the largest segment-level contributor to adjusted EBITDA. Underwriting revenue increased, but its adjusted EBITDA fell sharply and the gross loss ratio moved higher.

The underwriting segment’s weaker profit contribution coincided with a gross loss ratio of 52.0%, up from 50.5%. Member count increased to 314 from 248, but net revenue retention declined to 111% from 151%, indicating that growth within the existing member base was substantially slower than a year earlier.

Investment gains amplified earnings while first-half cash flow turned negative

Accelerant recorded $26.0 million of realized investment gains and $27.0 million of unrealized investment gains during Q2, compared with a combined investment loss of $0.1 million in the prior-year quarter. The $53.0 million contribution explains why GAAP revenue and net income grew much faster than operating revenue and adjusted earnings.

Expense growth offset part of that benefit. General and administrative expenses increased to $129.5 million from $89.1 million, while other expenses rose to $26.8 million from $13.2 million. Share-based compensation included in the adjusted EBITDA reconciliation increased to $25.2 million from $3.0 million.

Accelerant disclosed cash flow only for the first six months, rather than Q2 separately. First-half operating cash flow was negative $90.0 million, compared with positive $309.3 million a year earlier, despite six-month net income increasing to $75.9 million. Negative cash-flow effects included $396.5 million related to funds held under reinsurance and $352.1 million related to other reinsurance recoverables, partly offset by increases in payables to reinsurers and unpaid loss liabilities.

At June 30, Accelerant held $1.66 billion of cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, down from $1.80 billion at the end of 2025. Total investments were $763.3 million, debt was $120.1 million, and total equity was $744.0 million.

The company repurchased 4,725,968 Class A shares for $66 million during the quarter. Approximately $123 million remained under its repurchase authorization.

Pending Thoma Bravo acquisition replaces near-term guidance

Accelerant announced a definitive agreement to be acquired by Thoma Bravo in a separate release issued alongside its Q2 results. Because of the pending transaction, the company canceled its scheduled earnings conference call and did not provide Q3 or full-year 2026 guidance.

CEO Jeff Radke said Thoma Bravo’s financial and strategic resources could help develop Accelerant’s specialty insurance platform. Operationally, management highlighted the expansion of direct connections between third-party insurers and Risk Capital Partners, as well as the introduction of ARC, an AI agent designed to recognize, classify and structure incoming data.

Recent insider transactions

The supplied insider-transaction data shows that the ten most recently reported transactions were sales. Seven involved CEO Jeffrey L. Radke, primarily through indirect ownership; the records establish the transactions but do not indicate the insiders’ motives.

Over the latest six-month period in the supplied data, insiders purchased 1,099,061 shares across 10 transactions and sold 1,447,568 shares across 15 transactions, resulting in net sales of 348,507 shares.

Risks investors need to monitor

• Underwriting profitability: Underwriting adjusted EBITDA fell to $1.9 million from $15.9 million even as segment operating revenue increased. A further increase in the loss ratio could continue to pressure consolidated profitability.
• Cash conversion: First-half operating cash flow swung to a $90.0 million outflow from a $309.3 million inflow, showing that reported earnings did not translate into operating cash during the period.
• Investment-related volatility: The quarter included $53.0 million of realized and unrealized investment gains. Because these gains are excluded from Accelerant’s operating measures, future GAAP revenue and earnings may differ materially from underlying operating trends.
• Slower net revenue retention: Net revenue retention remained above 100% but declined to 111% from 151%. Continued weakening would reduce growth generated from existing members.
• Limited forward visibility: Accelerant did not provide Q3 or full-year guidance and canceled its conference call because of the pending Thoma Bravo transaction, leaving investors without quantified standalone targets.

Summary

Accelerant’s Q2 operating performance was led by higher Exchange Written Premium, a larger third-party premium mix and growth in Exchange Services and MGA Operations. Adjusted earnings and margins improved, but underwriting profitability weakened, investment gains amplified GAAP results, and first-half cash flow turned negative. The pending Thoma Bravo acquisition now shapes the company’s near-term outlook, while underwriting margins, cash conversion and net revenue retention remain the main operating indicators to monitor.