Slide shares drop 9% after Q2 results, CEO says looking to expand in New York, New Jersey and California

By Keira Wingate

Aug 13 - (The Insurer) - Slide Insurance's share price closed down 9.3% on Wednesday after it reported second-quarter results, while its CEO on its first earnings call as a public company said the Florida-based coastal specialist is eyeing expansion outside of its home state.

Gross premiums written climbed 25% from the prior-year period to $435.6 million in the second quarter, while the combined ratio improved 2.5 points to 67.4%

Diluted earnings per share came in at $0.56, with return on equity at 10% for the quarter and 25% year-to-date.

The share price of Slide, which went public on the Nasdaq Global Select Market through an IPO on June 18, closed at $15.44 on Wednesday, down 9.3% from the previous day's close.

During an investor call on Monday, CEO Bruce Lucas said: "That is exactly the type of results we strive to achieve with ProCast," referencing the carrier's proprietary AI underwriting platform.

Lucas said the company shifted its underwriting focus in the quarter to less risky inland and condominium policies, which typically carry lower reinsurance costs and higher profitability.

Slide also secured its reinsurance tower on favorable terms and is preparing for 175,000 approved policy takeouts from Florida's Citizens Property Insurance in the fourth quarter. However, it will only adopt policies that meet its standards selectively, Lucas said.

"Citizens' assumptions have been a win for everyone, including the state of Florida," Lucas said, noting that some recent takeouts offered policyholders average premium decreases of 5% compared to Citizens renewals, with additional savings for those not required to buy flood coverage.

On expansion, Lucas said South Carolina has become "a market that's really starting to fly for us," with strong premium growth and reduced reinsurance costs.

The company is licensed in New York, New Jersey and Rhode Island and aims to launch in New York and New Jersey in early 2026, pending regulatory review. California E&S homeowners is also in development.

In Florida, Lucas described the market as fragmented, with some new entrants lacking scale and large national carriers still steering clear of coastal specialty business.

"We will maintain a very bullish growth and underwriting profitability mindset,” he said, targeting long-term combined ratios in the low-to-mid 70s.

CFO Jesse Schalk highlighted that losses and loss adjustment expenses improved, with the loss ratio down 8.5 points to 37.4%, helped by a benign quarter for severe convective storms.

The company ended June with 348,400 policies in force, representing a 27% increase from the same period in the previous year.