Enact Holdings Inc (ACT) 2024 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good day and thank you for standing by. welcome to the Enact’s Q2 2024 earnings conference Call. (Operator Instructions) Please be advised that today's conference is being recorded.

美好的一天，感謝您的支持。歡迎參加 Enact 2024 年第二季財報電話會議。（操作員指示）請注意，今天的會議正在錄製中。

I would now like to hand the conference over to Mr. Daniel Kohl, Vice President of Investor Relations. Please go ahead.

我現在將會議交給投資者關係副總裁 Daniel Kohl 先生主持。請繼續。

Thank you, and good morning. welcome to our second quarter earnings call. Joining me today are Rohit Gupta, President and Chief Executive Officer; and Dean Mitchell, Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer. Rohit will provide an overview of our business performance and progress against our strategy.

謝謝你，早安。歡迎參加我們的第二季財報電話會議。今天與我一起出席的還有總裁兼執行長 Rohit Gupta；財務長兼財務主管 Dean Mitchell。羅希特將概述我們的業務績效以及我們的策略進展。

Dean will then discuss the details of our quarterly results before turning the call back to Rohit for closing remarks. We will then take your questions. The earnings materials we issued after market closed yesterday, contain our financial results for the quarter, along with a comprehensive set of financial and operational metrics.

然後迪恩將討論我們季度業績的細節，然後將電話轉回給羅希特進行總結發言。然後我們將回答您的問題。我們昨天收盤後發布的收益資料包含我們本季的財務業績，以及一套全面的財務和營運指標。

These are available on the Investor Relations section of our website. Today's call is being recorded and will include the use of forward-looking statements. These statements are based on current assumptions, estimates, expectations and projections as of today's date. Additionally, they are subject to risks and uncertainties, which may cause actual results to be materially different and we undertake no obligation to update or revise such statements as a result of new information.

這些可以在我們網站的投資者關係部分找到。今天的電話會議正在錄音，並將包括前瞻性陳述的使用。這些陳述是基於截至今天的當前假設、估計、預期和預測。此外，它們還存在風險和不確定性，可能導致實際結果存在重大差異，我們不承擔因新資訊而更新或修改此類聲明的義務。

For a discussion of these risks and uncertainties, please review the cautionary language regarding forward-looking statements in today's press release as well as in our filings with the SEC, which will be available on our website. Please keep in mind the earnings materials and management's prepared remarks today include certain non-GAAP measures. Reconciliations of these measures to the most relevant GAAP metrics can be found in the press release, our earnings presentation and our upcoming SEC filing on our website. With that, I'll turn the call over to Rohit.

有關這些風險和不確定性的討論，請查看今天的新聞稿以及我們向 SEC 提交的文件中有關前瞻性陳述的警告性語言，這些文件將在我們的網站上提供。請記住，今天的盈利材料和管理層準備的言論包括某些非公認會計原則措施。這些指標與最相關的 GAAP 指標的調整可以在我們網站上的新聞稿、我們的收益報告和即將向 SEC 提交的文件中找到。這樣，我會將電話轉給羅希特。

Thank you, Daniel. Good morning, everyone. Our second quarter results concluded an excellent first half of 2024. We remain focused on our priorities of driving profitable growth, maximizing efficiency and creating value for our shareholders. Our disciplined execution across each of these translated into strong financial performance.

謝謝你，丹尼爾。大家早安。我們的第二季業績為 2024 年上半年帶來了出色的業績。我們仍然專注於推動獲利成長、最大化效率和為股東創造價值的優先事項。我們在每一個方面的嚴格執行轉化為強勁的財務表現。

During the quarter, we reported adjusted operating income of $201 million, up 21% sequentially and 13% year-over-year. Adjusted EPS was $1.27, adjusted return on equity was a solid 17% and Insurance In-Force was a record $266 billion, up 1% sequentially and up 3% year-over-year.

本季度，我們報告調整後營業收入為 2.01 億美元，季增 21%，年增 13%。調整後每股收益為 1.27 美元，調整後股本回報率為 17%，有效保險金額達到創紀錄的 2,660 億美元，環比增長 1%，年增 3%。

As we mentioned last quarter, we continue to navigate through a complex operating environment. The US economy is holding up well with a strong labor market and household balance sheets that remain healthy overall. While macro factors such as inflation, higher interest rates and geopolitical conflicts remain potential risks, there are a number of positive trends supportive of housing and credit.

正如我們上季度提到的，我們繼續在複雜的營運環境中前進。美國經濟表現良好，勞動市場強勁，家庭資產負債表整體維持健康。儘管通膨、利率上升和地緣政治衝突等宏觀因素仍然存在潛在風險，但仍有許多積極趨勢支持住房和信貸。

Delinquency rates for prime mortgage borrowers are consistent with pre-pandemic levels. Our manufacturing quality continues to be strong, and our portfolio continues to retain high embedded equity. Over the longer term, the drivers of demand also remain intact as a growing number of people with less than 20% down payment resources reached the typical age for purchasing their first home.

優質抵押貸款借款人的拖欠率與疫情前的水平一致。我們的製造品質持續保持強勁，我們的投資組合繼續保持高嵌入資產。從長遠來看，隨著越來越多首付資源低於 20% 的人達到了購買頭套房屋的典型年齡，需求驅動因素也保持不變。

Overall, we are confident that mortgage insurance will continue to be a crucial resource to both buyers and lenders alike. Higher rates continue to benefit persistent fee, which again offset the effect of a higher rate environment on origination volumes and help drive Insurance In-Force growth. The credit quality of our insured portfolio continues to be strong.

總體而言，我們相信抵押貸款保險將繼續成為買家和貸方的重要資源。較高的費率持續有利於持續費用，這再次抵消了較高費率環境對發起量的影響，並有助於推動保險有效成長。我們承保投資組合的信用品質仍然強勁。

At quarter end, the risk weighted average FICO score of the portfolio was 745. The risk weighted average loan-to-value ratio was 94% and layered risk was 1.3%. Pricing remained constructive in the quarter, and we maintained our commitment to prudent underwriting standards.

截至季末，該投資組合的風險加權平均FICO評分為745。風險加權平均貸款價值率為94%，分層風險為1.3%。本季的定價仍然具有建設性，我們維持了對審慎承保標準的承諾。

Our pricing engine allows us to deliver competitive pricing on a risk-adjusted basis, and we continue to underwrite and select risk prudently while generating attractive returns. The delinquency rate in the quarter was 2%, flat as compared to last quarter and consistent with our expectations.

我們的定價引擎使我們能夠在風險調整的基礎上提供有競爭力的定價，並且我們繼續審慎地承保和選擇風險，同時產生有吸引力的回報。本季的拖欠率為 2%，與上季持平，符合我們的預期。

During the quarter, we released reserves of $77 million driven by favorable credit performance and our effective loss mitigation efforts. Based on continued strong cure performance and our current market expectations, we reduced our claim rate on new and existing delinquencies from 10% to 9% during the quarter.

在良好的信貸表現和有效的減損努力的推動下，本季我們釋放了 7,700 萬美元的準備金。基於持續強勁的治癒表現和我們當前的市場預期，我們在本季將新的和現有的拖欠債務索賠率從 10% 降低到 9%。

This change is aligned with our measured and prudent approach to loss reserves. We believe we remain well reserved for a range of scenarios. Dean will have more to say on this shortly. We continue to operate from a position of financial strength and flexibility.

這項變化符合我們對損失準備金的審慎謹慎的態度。我們相信，我們仍然為一系列情況做好了準備。迪恩很快就會就此發表更多言論。我們繼續以財務實力和靈活性為基礎開展營運。

At quarter end, our PMIERs sufficiency was 169% or $2.1 billion of sufficiency and approximately 77% of our Risk In-Force was subject to credit risk transfers. We continue to execute against our CRT strategy during the quarter with an additional excess of loss transaction further reducing our credit risk and enhancing our capital efficiency.

截至季末，我們的 PMIER 充足率為 169%（即 21 億美元），約 77% 的有效風險受到信用風險轉移的影響。本季我們繼續執行 CRT 策略，額外的超額損失交易進一步降低了我們的信用風險並提高了我們的資本效率。

During the quarter, we issued $750 million in senior notes, further strengthening our financial position by allowing us to refinance near-term maturities and saving $2 million in annual interest expense, this was our first investment-grade debt issuance as a public company and the largest investment-grade debt issuance in the industry in over a decade.

本季度，我們發行了7.5 億美元的優先票據，透過允許我們為近期到期的債券進行再融資並節省200 萬美元的年度利息費用，進一步增強了我們的財務狀況，這是我們作為上市公司首次發行投資等級債務，十多年來業界最大的投資等級債務發行。

The strength of our capital position and cash flows has allowed us to continue executing against our capital allocation priorities, which are supporting existing policyholders, growing our current business, investing in attractive new business opportunities and returning excess capital to shareholders. On our last capital allocation priority, we continue to return capital to our shareholders. During the quarter, we repurchased $49 million of shares.

我們的資本狀況和現金流的實力使我們能夠繼續執行我們的資本配置優先事項，即支持現有保單持有人，發展我們當前的業務，投資有吸引力的新商機並將多餘資本返還給股東。在我們最後的資本配置優先事項上，我們繼續向股東返還資本。本季度，我們回購了 4,900 萬美元的股票。

As of June 30, we have completed our $100 million share repurchase program and have $238 million remaining in our recently announced $250 million authorization. We also distributed $29 million to shareholders via our quarterly dividend. We now expect our total capital return to be between $300 million and $350 million in 2024, reflecting our continued strong performance and balance sheet.

截至 6 月 30 日，我們已經完成了 1 億美元的股票回購計劃，最近宣布的 2.5 億美元授權中還剩 2.38 億美元。我們也透過季度股利向股東分配了 2,900 萬美元。我們現在預計 2024 年的總資本回報率將在 3 億至 3.5 億美元之間，這反映了我們持續強勁的業績和資產負債表。

Finally, we have continued to pursue strategic opportunities to extend our platform into compelling adjacencies that enhance our return profile, differentiate our platform and leverage our core competencies.

最後，我們繼續尋求策略機會，將我們的平台擴展到引人注目的周邊地區，從而提高我們的回報狀況、使我們的平台脫穎而出並利用我們的核心競爭力。

A year ago, we successfully launched Enact Re, expanding our platform into the GSE credit risk transfer market. During the quarter, we continued to participate in the GSE CRT transactions that came to market. Since its inception, Enact Re has performed well, maintaining a strong underwriting and attractive return profile. Enact Re is sufficiently funded to support its growth for the foreseeable future and remains a long-term capital and expense efficient growth opportunity.

一年前，我們成功推出了 Enact Re，將我們的平台擴展到 GSE 信用風險轉移市場。本季度，我們繼續參與上市的 GSE CRT 交易。自成立以來，Enact Re 表現良好，保持著強勁的承保和有吸引力的回報狀況。 Enact Re 擁有足夠的資金來支持其在可預見的未來的成長，並且仍然是一個長期資本和費用高效的成長機會。

Finally, I would like to take a moment to touch on our culture. At Enact, we strive to create a culture that encourages collaboration and are committed to maintaining an engaging work environment where our teams are at their best. I'm pleased to announce that during the quarter, Enact was recognized as one of the best places to work by the Triangle Business Journal.

最後，我想花點時間談談我們的文化。在 Enact，我們努力創造一種鼓勵協作的文化，並致力於維持一個有吸引力的工作環境，讓我們的團隊處於最佳狀態。我很高興地宣布，在本季度，Enact 被《三角商業雜誌》評為最佳工作場所之一。

We appreciate this acknowledgment of our leadership in the workplace and a testament to the strength of our team. Overall, we are pleased with our excellent performance in the first half of 2024. Looking ahead, we are focused on executing against our strategic priorities and are committed to maximizing value for all of our shareholders with that.

我們感謝這種對我們在職場領導的認可，也是對我們團隊實力的證明。總體而言，我們對 2024 年上半年的出色表現感到滿意。

I will now turn the call over to Dean.

我現在將把電話轉給 Dean。

Thank you, Daniel. Good morning, everyone. Our second quarter results concluded an excellent first half of 2024. We remain focused on our priorities of driving profitable growth, maximizing efficiency and creating value for our shareholders. Our disciplined execution across each of these translated into strong financial performance.

謝謝你，丹尼爾。大家早安。我們的第二季業績在 2024 年上半年表現出色。我們在每一個方面的嚴格執行轉化為強勁的財務表現。

During the quarter, we reported adjusted operating income of $201 million, up 21% sequentially and 13% year-over-year. Adjusted EPS was $1.27, adjusted return on equity was a solid 17% and Insurance In-Force was a record $266 billion, up 1% sequentially and up 3% year-over-year.

本季度，我們報告調整後營業收入為 2.01 億美元，季增 21%，年增 13%。調整後每股收益為 1.27 美元，調整後股本回報率為 17%，有效保險金額達到創紀錄的 2,660 億美元，環比增長 1%，年增 3%。

As we mentioned last quarter, we continue to navigate through a complex operating environment. The US economy is holding up well with a strong labor market and household balance sheets that remain healthy overall. While macro factors such as inflation, higher interest rates and geopolitical conflicts remain potential risks, there are a number of positive trends supportive of housing and credit.

正如我們上季度提到的，我們繼續在複雜的營運環境中前進。美國經濟表現良好，勞動市場強勁，家庭資產負債表整體維持健康。儘管通膨、利率上升和地緣政治衝突等宏觀因素仍然存在潛在風險，但仍有許多積極趨勢支持住房和信貸。

Delinquency rates for prime mortgage borrowers are consistent with pre-pandemic levels. Our manufacturing quality continues to be strong, and our portfolio continues to retain high embedded equity. Over the longer term, the drivers of demand also remain intact as a growing number of people with less than 20% down payment resources reached the typical age for purchasing their first home.

優質抵押貸款借款人的拖欠率與疫情前的水平一致。我們的製造品質持續保持強勁，我們的投資組合繼續保持高嵌入資產。從長遠來看，隨著越來越多首付資源低於 20% 的人達到了購買頭套房屋的典型年齡，需求驅動因素也保持不變。

Overall, we are confident that mortgage insurance will continue to be a crucial resource to both buyers and lenders alike. Higher rates continue to benefit persistent fee, which again offset the effect of a higher rate environment on origination volumes and help drive Insurance In-Force growth. The credit quality of our insured portfolio continues to be strong.

總體而言，我們相信抵押貸款保險將繼續成為買家和貸方的重要資源。較高的費率持續有利於持續費用，這再次抵消了較高費率環境對發起量的影響，並有助於推動保險有效成長。我們承保投資組合的信用品質仍然強勁。

At quarter end, the risk weighted average FICO score of the portfolio was 745. The risk weighted average loan-to-value ratio was 94% and layered risk was 1.3%. Pricing remained constructive in the quarter, and we maintained our commitment to prudent underwriting standards.

截至季末，該投資組合的風險加權平均FICO評分為745。本季的定價仍然具有建設性，我們維持了對審慎承保標準的承諾。

Our pricing engine allows us to deliver competitive pricing on a risk-adjusted basis, and we continue to underwrite and select risk prudently while generating attractive returns. The delinquency rate in the quarter was 2%, flat as compared to last quarter and consistent with our expectations.

我們的定價引擎使我們能夠在風險調整的基礎上提供有競爭力的定價，並且我們繼續審慎地承保和選擇風險，同時產生有吸引力的回報。本季的拖欠率為 2%，與上季持平，符合我們的預期。

During the quarter, we released reserves of $77 million driven by favorable credit performance and our effective loss mitigation efforts. Based on continued strong cure performance and our current market expectations, we reduced our claim rate on new and existing delinquencies from 10% to 9% during the quarter.

在良好的信貸表現和有效的損失緩解措施的推動下，本季我們釋放了 7,700 萬美元的準備金。基於持續強勁的治癒表現和我們當前的市場預期，我們在本季將新的和現有的拖欠債務索賠率從 10% 降低到 9%。

This change is aligned with our measured and prudent approach to loss reserves. We believe we remain well reserved for a range of scenarios. Dean will have more to say on this shortly. We continue to operate from a position of financial strength and flexibility.

這項變化符合我們對損失準備金的審慎謹慎的態度。我們相信，我們仍然為一系列情況做好了準備。迪恩很快就會就此發表更多言論。我們繼續以財務實力和靈活性為基礎開展營運。

At quarter end, our PMIERs sufficiency was 169% or $2.1 billion of sufficiency and approximately 77% of our Risk In-Force was subject to credit risk transfers. We continue to execute against our CRT strategy during the quarter with an additional excess of loss transaction further reducing our credit risk and enhancing our capital efficiency.

截至季末，我們的 PMIER 充足率為 169%（即 21 億美元），約 77% 的有效風險受到信用風險轉移的影響。本季我們繼續執行 CRT 策略，額外的超額損失交易進一步降低了我們的信用風險並提高了我們的資本效率。

During the quarter, we issued $750 million in senior notes, further strengthening our financial position by allowing us to refinance near-term maturities and saving $2 million in annual interest expense, this was our first investment-grade debt issuance as a public company and the largest investment-grade debt issuance in the industry in over a decade.

本季度，我們發行了7.5 億美元的優先票據，透過允許我們為近期到期的債券進行再融資並節省200 萬美元的年度利息費用，進一步增強了我們的財務狀況，這是我們作為上市公司首次發行投資等級債務，十多年來業界最大的投資等級債務發行。

The strength of our capital position and cash flows has allowed us to continue executing against our capital allocation priorities, which are supporting existing policyholders, growing our current business, investing in attractive new business opportunities and returning excess capital to shareholders. On our last capital allocation priority, we continue to return capital to our shareholders. During the quarter, we repurchased $49 million of shares.

我們的資本狀況和現金流的實力使我們能夠繼續執行我們的資本配置優先事項，即支持現有保單持有人，發展我們當前的業務，投資有吸引力的新商機並將多餘資本返還給股東。在我們最後的資本配置優先事項上，我們繼續向股東返還資本。本季度，我們回購了 4,900 萬美元的股票。

As of June 30, we have completed our $100 million share repurchase program and have $238 million remaining in our recently announced $250 million authorization. We also distributed $29 million to shareholders via our quarterly dividend. We now expect our total capital return to be between $300 million and $350 million in 2024, reflecting our continued strong performance and balance sheet.

截至 6 月 30 日，我們已經完成了 1 億美元的股票回購計劃，最近宣布的 2.5 億美元授權中還剩 2.38 億美元。我們也透過季度股利向股東分配了 2,900 萬美元。我們現在預計 2024 年的總資本回報率將在 3 億至 3.5 億美元之間，這反映了我們持續強勁的業績和資產負債表。

Finally, we have continued to pursue strategic opportunities to extend our platform into compelling adjacencies that enhance our return profile, differentiate our platform and leverage our core competencies.

最後，我們繼續尋求策略機會，將我們的平台擴展到引人注目的周邊地區，從而提高我們的回報狀況、使我們的平台脫穎而出並利用我們的核心競爭力。

A year ago, we successfully launched Enact Re, expanding our platform into the GSE credit risk transfer market. During the quarter, we continued to participate in the GSE CRT transactions that came to market. Since its inception, Enact Re has performed well, maintaining a strong underwriting and attractive return profile. Enact Re is sufficiently funded to support its growth for the foreseeable future and remains a long-term capital and expense efficient growth opportunity.

一年前，我們成功推出了 Enact Re，將我們的平台擴展到 GSE 信用風險轉移市場。本季度，我們繼續參與上市的 GSE CRT 交易。自成立以來，Enact Re 表現良好，保持著強勁的承保和有吸引力的回報狀況。Enact Re 擁有足夠的資金來支持其在可預見的未來的成長，並且仍然是一個長期資本和費用高效的成長機會。

Finally, I would like to take a moment to touch on our culture. At Enact, we strive to create a culture that encourages collaboration and are committed to maintaining an engaging work environment where our teams are at their best. I'm pleased to announce that during the quarter, Enact was recognized as one of the best places to work by the Triangle Business Journal.

最後，我想花點時間談談我們的文化。在 Enact，我們努力創造一種鼓勵協作的文化，並致力於維持一個有吸引力的工作環境，讓我們的團隊發揮最佳狀態。我很高興地宣布，本季度，Enact 被《三角商業雜誌》評為最佳工作場所之一。

We appreciate this acknowledgment of our leadership in the workplace and a testament to the strength of our team. Overall, we are pleased with our excellent performance in the first half of 2024. Looking ahead, we are focused on executing against our strategic priorities and are committed to maximizing value for all of our shareholders with that.

我們感謝這種對我們在職場領導的認可，也是對我們團隊實力的證明。總體而言，我們對 2024 年上半年的出色表現感到滿意。展望未來，我們將專注於執行我們的策略重點，並致力於為所有股東實現價值最大化。

I will now turn the call over to Dean.

我現在將把電話轉給 Dean。

Dean Mitchell

迪恩·米切爾

Thanks, Rohit. Good morning, everyone. We delivered another set of strong results in the second quarter of 2024. GAAP net income for the second quarter was $184 million or $1.16 per diluted share compared to $1.04 per diluted share in the same period last year and $1.01 per diluted share in the first quarter of 2024. Return on equity was 15%.

謝謝，羅希特。大家早安。我們在 2024 年第二季取得了另一組強勁的業績。第二季 GAAP 淨利潤為 1.84 億美元，即稀釋後每股收益 1.16 美元，去年同期稀釋後每股收益為 1.04 美元，2024 年第一季稀釋後每股收益為 1.01 美元。股本回報率為15%。

Adjusted operating income was $201 million or $1.27 per diluted share compared to $1.10 per diluted share in the same period last year and $1.04 per diluted share in the first quarter of 2024. Adjusted operating return on equity was 17%. As I explained the drivers of this quarter's performance, I'll highlight the differences between net income and adjusted operating income.

調整後營業收入為 2.01 億美元，即稀釋後每股收益 1.27 美元，而去年同期為稀釋後每股收益 1.10 美元，2024 年第一季稀釋後每股收益為 1.04 美元。調整後的營運股本報酬率為 17%。在我解釋本季業績的驅動因素時，我將強調淨利潤和調整後營業收入之間的差異。

Turning to revenue drivers. Primary Insurance In-Force increased in the second quarter to a new record of $266 billion, up $2 billion sequentially and up $8 billion or 3% year-over-year. New insurance written was $14 billion, up $3 billion sequentially and down $1 billion or 10% year-over-year. Persistency was 83% in the second quarter, down 2 percentage points sequentially and down 1 percentage point year-over-year.

轉向收入驅動因素。第二季有效主險增加至 2,660 億美元，創下新紀錄，比上一季增加 20 億美元，年增 80 億美元，成長 3%。新承保金額為 140 億美元，季增 30 億美元，年減 10 億美元，成長 10%。第二季的持續率為 83%，季減 2 個百分點，較去年同期下降 1 個百分點。

The sequential decline in persistency is aligned with historical seasonality as we transition to the spring selling season. Given the current level of mortgage rates, persistency remains elevated, and this marks the ninth quarter in a row of persistency at or above 80%. Only 4% of the mortgages in our portfolio had rates at least 50 basis points above the prevailing market rate. We anticipate that elevated persistency will continue to help offset lower production in the current higher rate environment. Net premiums earned were $245 million, up $4 million or 2% sequentially and up $6 million or 3% year-over-year.

當我們過渡到春季銷售季節時，持續性的連續下降與歷史季節性一致。鑑於目前的抵押貸款利率水平，持續性仍然較高，這標誌著持續性連續第九個季度達到或超過 80%。我們投資組合中只有 4% 的抵押貸款利率比現行市場利率高出至少 50 個基點。我們預計，持續性的提高將繼續有助於抵消當前較高利率環境下的產量下降。淨保費收入為 2.45 億美元，比上一季增加 400 萬美元，或 2%，比去年同期增加 600 萬美元，即 3%。

The sequential and year-over-year increases in net premiums were driven by Insurance In-Force growth, and our growth in attractive adjacencies, consisting primarily of the Enact Re's GSE CRT participation. These increases were partially offset by higher ceded premiums.

淨保費的環比和同比增長是由保險有效增長以及我們有吸引力的鄰接關係的增長推動的，其中主要包括 Enact Re 的 GSE CRT 參與。這些增長被較高的分出保費部分抵消。

Our base premium rate of 40.3 basis points was up 0.2 basis points sequentially and flat year-over-year. As a reminder, our base premium rate is impacted by several factors and tends to modestly fluctuate from quarter-to-quarter.

我們的基本保費率為 40.3 個基點，較上季上升 0.2 個基點，與去年同期持平。提醒一下，我們的基本保費率受到多種因素的影響，每季都會略有波動。

Our net earned premium rate was 36.4 basis points, up 0.1 basis points sequentially as higher ceded premiums partially offset the increase in base rate. Investment income in the second quarter was $50 million, up $3 million or 5% sequentially and up $9 million or 17% year-over-year. Higher interest rates have increased our investment portfolio yields. And as our portfolio rolls over, we anticipate further yield improvement.

我們的淨賺取保費率為 36.4 個基點，比上一季上升 0.1 個基點，因為較高的分出保費部分抵消了基本費率的成長。第二季投資收益為 5,000 萬美元，季增 300 萬美元，成長 5%，年增 900 萬美元，成長 17%。較高的利率提高了我們的投資組合收益率。隨著我們的投資組合展期，我們預計收益率將進一步提高。

During the quarter, our new money investment yield continued to exceed 5%, contributing to an overall portfolio book yield of 3.8%. Our focus remains on high-quality assets and maintaining a resilient A-rated portfolio. As we previously stated, while we typically hold investments to maturity, we will selectively pursue income enhancement opportunities.

本季度，我們的新資金投資收益率持續超過 5%，整體投資組合帳面收益率達到 3.8%。我們的重點仍然是優質資產和維持具有彈性的 A 級投資組合。正如我們之前所說，雖然我們通常持有投資直至到期，但我們將有選擇地尋求增加收入的機會。

During the quarter, we executed a strategy resulting in $8 million of pretax losses in exchange for higher future investment income, which is excluded from our adjusted operating income. While we will continue to evaluate and pursue similar opportunities as appropriate, this does not change our view that our investment portfolio's unrealized loss position is materially non-economic.

在本季度，我們執行了一項策略，導致稅前虧損 800 萬美元，以換取更高的未來投資收入，該收入不包括在我們調整後的營業收入中。雖然我們將繼續酌情評估和尋求類似的機會，但這並沒有改變我們的觀點，即我們的投資組合的未實現損失頭寸實質上是非經濟的。

Turning to credit. Losses in the second quarter of 2024 were negative $17 million, and the loss ratio was negative 7% compared to $20 million or 8% respectively in the first quarter of 2024 and negative $4 million and negative 2% respectively in the second quarter of 2023. The sequential and year-over-year decrease in losses and the loss ratio were primarily driven by a reserve release of $77 million, reflecting favorable cure performance and the lowering of our claim rate expectations from 10% to 9%.

轉向信用。2024 年第二季虧損為負1,700 萬美元，虧損率為負7%，而2024 年第一季虧損率為2,000 萬美元，虧損率為8%；2023 年第二季虧損率為負400 萬美元，虧損率為負2%。損失和損失率環比和同比下降主要是由於釋放了 7700 萬美元的準備金，反映出良好的治療效果以及我們的索賠率預期從 10% 降低至 9%。

We not only lowered our claim rate on existing delinquencies but also new delinquencies as a result of sustained favorable cure performance and our current market expectations. The $77 million reserve release compares to a reserve release of $54 million and $63 million in the first quarter of 2024 and second quarter of 2023 respectively.

由於持續良好的治療效果和我們目前的市場預期，我們不僅降低了現有拖欠的索賠率，還降低了新拖欠的索賠率。此次釋放的準備金為 7,700 萬美元，而 2024 年第一季和 2023 年第二季的準備金釋放分別為 5,400 萬美元和 6,300 萬美元。

New delinquencies decreased sequentially to 10,500 from 11,400 in line with seasonal expectations. Our new delinquency rate remained consistent with pre-pandemic levels and for the quarter was 1.1% compared to 1.2% sequentially and 1% in the second quarter of 2023. Total delinquencies in the second quarter decreased sequentially to 19,100 from 19,500.

新拖欠數量較上月從 11,400 減少至 10,500，符合季節性預期。我們的新拖欠率與疫情前的水準保持一致，本季為 1.1%，而上一季為 1.2%，2023 年第二季為 1%。第二季拖欠總數從 19,500 起下降至 19,100 起。

The primary delinquency rate decreased 5 basis points sequentially to 2% in line with pre-pandemic levels. Turning to expenses. Operating expenses in the second quarter of 2024 were $56 million and the expense ratio was 23% compared to $53 million and 22% respectively in the first quarter of 2024 and $55 million and 23% respectively in the second quarter of 2023.

主要拖欠率連續下降 5 個基點至 2%，與疫情前的水準一致。轉向開支。2024年第二季的營運費用為5,600萬美元，費用率為23%，而2024年第一季的營運費用分別為5,300萬美元及22%，2023年第二季的營運費用分別為5,500萬美元和23%。

We also initiated a voluntary separation program during the second quarter that resulted in a restructuring charge of $3 million that is excluded from our adjusted operating income and represents approximately 1 percentage point impact in the expense ratio for the quarter. We remain focused on operating efficiency and still expect our expenses excluding these restructuring charges to be in the range of $220 million to $225 million for 2024.

我們還在第二季度啟動了一項自願離職計劃，產生了 300 萬美元的重組費用，該費用不包括在我們調整後的營業收入中，對本季度的費用率產生約 1 個百分點的影響。我們仍然關注營運效率，預計 2024 年（不包括這些重組費用）的支出將在 2.2 億至 2.25 億美元之間。

Moving to capital. We continue to operate from a strong capital and liquidity position, reinforced by our robust PMIERS sufficiency and continued successful execution of our diversified CRT program. During the quarter, we secured $90 million of additional excess of loss reinsurance coverage to reduce credit risk and enhance our capital efficiency and as of June 30, 2024, our third-party CRT program provides $1.8 billion of PMIERs capital credit.

遷往首都。我們繼續以強大的資本和流動性狀況開展運營，這得益於我們強大的 PMIERS 充足性以及我們多元化 CRT 計劃的持續成功執行。本季度，我們獲得了9000 萬美元的額外超額損失再保險保障，以降低信用風險並提高我們的資本效率，截至2024 年6 月30 日，我們的第三方CRT 計劃提供了18 億美元的PMIER 資本信貸。

Our PMIERS sufficiency was 169% and or $2.1 billion above PMIERs requirements at the end of the second quarter. During the quarter, we also elected to exercise cleanup calls on two CRT transactions covering the 2014 through 2019 books and the 2020 book.

截至第二季末，我們的 PMIERS 充足率達到 169%，比 PMIER 要求高出 21 億美元。在本季度，我們也選擇對涵蓋 2014 年至 2019 年帳簿和 2020 年帳簿的兩項 CRT 交易進行清理。

These two transactions account for approximately 15% of our Risk In-Force. We exercised these cleanup calls in part because they provided nominal loss coverage and PMIERs credit and the associated loans have high embedded equity, which reduced the probability of loss.

這兩筆交易約占我們有效風險的 15%。我們執行這些清理要求的部分原因是它們提供了名目損失保險，並且 PMIER 信貸和相關貸款具有較高的嵌入權益，從而降低了損失的可能性。

As a result of these commutations, at the end of the second quarter, 77% of our Risk In-Force was subject to credit risk transfer, which is down from 90% at the end of the prior quarter. We further strengthened our balance sheet during the quarter through our $750 million debt offering. We used the proceeds to refinance our 2025 notes, which extends our maturities and will result in $2 million in annual interest expense savings.

由於這些轉換，截至第二季末，我們 77% 的有效風險進行了信用風險轉移，低於上一季末的 90%。本季我們透過 7.5 億美元的債務發行進一步強化了我們的資產負債表。我們用所得款項為 2025 年票據進行再融資，這延長了我們的期限，並將每年節省 200 萬美元的利息費用。

The transaction resulted in $11 million of debt extinguishment costs consisting of approximately $8 million in debt redemption costs and approximately $3 million in accelerated debt issuance costs in the quarter, both of which are excluded from our adjusted operating income.

該交易產生了 1,100 萬美元的債務清償成本，其中包括約 800 萬美元的債務贖回成本和約 300 萬美元的加速債務發行成本，這兩項成本均不包括在我們調整後的營業收入中。

Turning to capital allocation we continue to execute against our capital prioritization framework, which balances maintaining a strong balance sheet, investing in our business and returning capital to shareholders. During the quarter, we paid $29 million or $0.185 per common share through our quarterly dividend, reflecting a 16% increase as previously announced.

在資本配置方面，我們繼續按照我們的資本優先框架執行，該框架平衡了維持強勁的資產負債表、投資我們的業務和向股東返還資本。本季度，我們透過季度股息支付了 2,900 萬美元，即每股普通股 0.185 美元，與先前宣布的相比增長了 16%。

Today, we announced the third quarter dividend of $0.185 per common share payable September 9. Additionally, we continue to focus on accelerating our share buyback participation and repurchased 1.6 million shares at a weighted average share price of $30.43 for a total of $49 million in the quarter.

今天，我們宣布將於 9 月 9 日派發第三季股息，每股普通股 0.185 美元。此外，我們繼續專注於加速股票回購參與，以加權平均股價 30.43 美元回購了 160 萬股股票，本季回購總額為 4,900 萬美元。

In July, we've repurchased an additional 0.4 million shares at a weighted average share price of $31.01 for a total of $13 million repurchased. During the quarter, we completed our $100 million share repurchase authorization. And as of July 26, 2024, there was approximately $226 million remaining on our $250 million repurchase authorization.

7 月份，我們以 31.01 美元的加權平均股價額外回購了 40 萬股股票，回購總額為 1,300 萬美元。本季度，我們完成了 1 億美元的股票回購授權。截至 2024 年 7 月 26 日，我們的 2.5 億美元回購授權尚剩餘約 2.26 億美元。

The strength of our capital position allows us to balance investing in the business with returning capital to shareholders. And as I just detailed, we now expect to return approximately $110 million through our common dividend in 2024.

我們的資本實力雄厚，使我們能夠平衡業務投資與向股東返還資本。正如我剛才詳述的，我們現在預計透過 2024 年的普通股息回報約 1.1 億美元。

Additionally, we expect to return between $190 million and $240 million through our share buyback program. Collectively, these result in an expected 2024 capital return between $300 million and $350 million, reflecting our consistent performance and strong balance sheet. As in the past, the final amount and form of capital return to shareholders will depend on business performance, market conditions and regulatory approvals.

此外，我們預計透過股票回購計畫獲得 1.9 億至 2.4 億美元的回報。總的來說，預計 2024 年的資本回報將在 3 億至 3.5 億美元之間，反映了我們一貫的業績和強勁的資產負債表。與過去一樣，股東資本回報的最終金額和形式將取決於經營績效、市場狀況和監管部門的批准。

Overall, we are incredibly pleased with our performance in the first half of 2024. We believe we are well positioned for the second half of the year and beyond, and we'll remain focused on prudently managing risk, maintaining a strong balance sheet and driving solid returns for our shareholders.

整體而言，我們對 2024 年上半年的表現感到非常滿意。我們相信，我們在今年下半年及以後處於有利地位，我們將繼續專注於審慎管理風險、維持強勁的資產負債表並為股東帶來穩健的回報。

With that, I'll turn the call back to Rohit.

這樣，我會將電話轉回給羅希特。

Thanks, Dean. As I reflect on our performance and look to the second half of 2024 and beyond, I continue to be encouraged by the long-term dynamics of our market. Our product continues to help people responsibly achieve the dream of homeownership in a complex environment. Our dedication to this principle underpins all aspects of our business and drives our efforts to deliver exceptional value for all of our stakeholders. Operator, we are now ready for Q&A.

謝謝，迪恩。當我反思我們的業績並展望 2024 年下半年及以後時，我繼續對我們市場的長期動態感到鼓舞。我們的產品不斷幫助人們在複雜的環境中負責任地實現擁有住房的夢想。我們對這項原則的奉獻支撐著我們業務的各個方面，並推動我們努力為所有利害關係人提供卓越的價值。接線員，我們現在準備好進行問答了。

(Operator Instructions).

（操作員說明）。

Soham Bhonsle from BTIG.

來自 BTIG 的 Soham Bhonsle。

Hey, guys. Good morning. Hope you’re doing well. Just the first one on NIW. It looked like it was lower versus some of your peers that reported this quarter. So I was just wondering if there's any errors or factors that maybe you stepped away from or anything discernible to note there?

嘿，夥計們。早安.希望你一切順利。這只是 NIW 上的第一個。看起來它比本季度報告的一些同行要低。所以我只是想知道是否有任何錯誤或因素可能是您忽略的，或者有什麼明顯需要注意的地方？

Thanks.

謝謝。

Good morning, sir. And thank you for the question. So no, there was nothing different this quarter, there is some level of volatility that happens quarter-to-quarter and obviously, we still don't have one peer who has reported in the market so tough to tell where we are on market share.

早上好，先生。謝謝你的提問。所以不，本季沒有什麼不同，每個季度都會發生一定程度的波動，顯然，我們仍然沒有一個同行在市場上報告過，所以很難判斷我們的市場份額。

But the way we see the market from a pricing perspective, we saw the pricing being constructive in the market. We think that the four peers out of five who have reported are in a tight range. four peers actually have a $13 billion handle in terms of NIW. So it seems like most people were kind of pretty close.

但從定價角度來看，我們認為定價對市場是有建設性的。我們認為，已報告的五分之四的同行都處於狹窄的範圍內。就 NIW 而言，四家同業實際上擁有 130 億美元的資金。所以看起來大多數人都非常接近。

And then I think in the past, we have talked about the way we think about market participation is you almost have to look at trailing 12 months of market share and market participation, not that market share is a goal, it's more of an outcome for us.

然後我想，在過去，我們討論過我們思考市場參與度的方式是，你幾乎必須查看過去 12 個月的市場份額和市場參與度，而不是市場份額是一個目標，它更多的是一個結果我們。

But if you look at the last quater quarters, I think you see some volatility in our participation, but generally in a pretty tight range. So we are comfortable with our participation in the market. We like the approximately $14 billion of NIW we wrote in the quarter and the guidelines, the pricing that we're getting on that, we are really happy with that.

但如果你看看上個季度，我認為你會看到我們的參與度出現了一些波動，但總體來說波動範圍相當小。因此，我們對參與市場感到滿意。我們喜歡我們在本季度編寫的約 140 億美元的 NIW 以及指導方針，我們對此的定價，我們對此非常滿意。

Okay. Great. And then on the lower claim rate, credit is obviously still very good. Consumer seems in a good place. But it does seem like the consumer is slowing on the edges and if you look at just inventory that's potentially building in some of the large markets, Texas, Florida, right, these are some of the sort of the risks that we're seeing, but I guess you did take it down. So wondering how you're looking at this or assessing those risks going forward? And how sustainable do you think the lower sort of claim rate can be? Thanks.

好的。偉大的。然後就較低的索賠率而言，信用顯然還是非常好的。消費者似乎處於一個好的位置。但消費者似乎正在放緩，如果你只看德克薩斯州、佛羅裡達州等一些大型市場可能建立的庫存，這些就是我們看到的一些風險，但我猜你確實把它拿下來了。那麼想知道您如何看待這個問題或評估未來的這些風險？您認為較低的索賠率有多可持續？謝謝。

Yes, Soham. thanks for that question as well. I think we previously discussed, there were a couple of potential catalysts for the reassessment of claim rate. First relates to the economic uncertainty and a reduction in economic uncertainty. And then second, if we gave more consideration to the sustained delinquency performance and elevated cure performance that we've seen over time.

是的，索漢姆。也謝謝你提出這個問題。我認為我們之前討論過，重新評估索賠率有幾個潛在的催化劑。首先涉及經濟不確定性和經濟不確定性的減少。其次，如果我們更多地考慮我們隨著時間的推移所看到的持續的犯罪表現和提高的治癒表現。

Those would both the potential catalyst for the reassessment of claim rate. This quarter, we really relied on both of those and making the change from 10% to 9%. If we take those kind of in their piece parts, very much in line with the consensus view on that macroeconomic environment. We believe the economic uncertainty is reduced.

這些都將成為重新評估索賠率的潛在催化劑。本季度，我們確實依賴這兩者，並將比例從 10% 更改為 9%。如果我們把這些分解成各個部分，那麼這非常符合人們對宏觀經濟環境的共識。我們認為經濟不確定性減少。

That doesn't mean that it's completely gone away. And I think our 9% claim rate still reflects the ongoing presence of uncertainty, but that range has certainly narrowed and that is one of the catalysts for the change this quarter. And then secondarily, we gave certainly some more weight and you can think about consideration or weight to our recent delinquency performance this quarter.

這並不意味著它已經完全消失。我認為我們 9% 的索賠率仍然反映了不確定性的持續存在，但這一範圍肯定已經縮小，這是本季變化的催化劑之一。其次，我們當然給予了更多的重視，您可以考慮對我們本季最近的拖欠表現進行考慮或重視。

So the result is we lowered the claim rate, both on the most recent delinquency cohorts. So think about that from the second half of 2023 through first quarter '24 and also the claim rate on new delinquencies.

因此，結果是我們降低了最近犯罪群體的索賠率。因此，請考慮一下從 2023 年下半年到 24 年第一季的情況，以及新拖欠的索賠率。

If we think about the go forward, what would cause us to reevaluate that. I think it's a similar catalyst if economic uncertainty changed and/or we gave more weight to ongoing performance. I think either one of those could cause us to come back and evaluate that claim rate through time. And again, we're going to continue to apply what we believe is a prudent and measured approach to loss reserving through time.

如果我們考慮未來，什麼會導致我們重新評估這一點。我認為，如果經濟不確定性改變和/或我們更重視持續表現，這也是一個類似的催化劑。我認為其中任何一個都可能導致我們回來並隨著時間的推移評估索賠率。再次強調，我們將繼續採用我們認為審慎且謹慎的方法來保留長期損失。

Second question, Soham, in terms of inventory buildup as well as consumer softening, I think we are definitely keeping an eye on it. I think we have seen some volatility. If you think about second half of 2022, early 2023, we saw some volatility in the market, but eventually, the trends came back to more fundamental trends, which we believe are driven by several macro factors. On the housing side, there is less inventory in the market than there are people who are interested in buying homes.

第二個問題，Soham，就庫存累積和消費者疲軟而言，我認為我們肯定會密切關注。我認為我們已經看到了一些波動。如果你想想 2022 年下半年、2023 年初，我們看到市場出現了一些波動，但最終，趨勢又回到了更基本的趨勢，我們認為這是由幾個宏觀因素驅動的。在住房方面，市場上的庫存少於有興趣買房的人。

We think that at least the number is somewhere around 2 million homes short in the market compared to people who actually want to buy. While the inventory has risen recently in the month of June and it's kind of closer to four months, it's still below the long-term average. A balanced market is closer to six months. And in markets like Florida, what we are seeing is inventory is rising in the smaller markets.

我們認為，與真正想要購買的人相比，市場上至少還有 200 萬套房屋短缺。雖然最近 6 月的庫存有所上升，而且已經接近四個月了，但仍低於長期平均值。一個平衡的市場接近六個月。在佛羅裡達州等市場，我們看到較小市場的庫存正在增加。

So if you look at where the sales happen, more than 80% of sales markets where more than 80% of sales happen actually still have a very stable and kind of low inventory and then in the smaller markets, there's been some rise. So we are keeping an eye on it. But going back to Dean's point, I think we are keeping an eye on unemployment, which is a big factor in kind of how we think about credit and then also keeping an eye on the housing market balance.

因此，如果你看看銷售發生的地方，超過80% 的銷售市場（其中80% 以上的銷售發生）實際上仍然具有非常穩定且較低的庫存，然後在較小的市場中，庫存有所增加。所以我們正在密切關注它。但回到迪恩的觀點，我認為我們正在關注失業率，這是我們如何看待信貸的一個重要因素，然後還要關注房地產市場的平衡。

Okay. Great. I guess, Rohit, just if I could squeeze one in. I think as we sort of get into the back half of the year, I think investors are sort of thinking about how MI could be viewed in sort of the context of a new administration potentially, right? And I guess we know how they're viewing it in the current administration, but if you could just spend a minute and talk about potential ramifications, whether that's ending conservatorship or just going to more of a free market sort of approach? Anything there would be great. Thank You.

好的。偉大的。我想，羅希特，如果我能塞進去一個就好了。我認為，當我們進入今年下半年時，我認為投資者正在思考如何在新政府的背景下看待 MI ，對嗎？我想我們知道他們在本屆政府中如何看待這個問題，但是您是否可以花一點時間談談潛在的後果，是結束監管還是只是採取更多自由市場的方法？任何事情都會很棒。謝謝。

Yes. So very good question, Soham. I would say MI is well positioned kind of on both sides of the aisle. I think from a consumer perspective, we are a product that actually helps consumers achieve the dream of homeownership. We actually help consumers get in the path of get on the path of wealth accumulation through homeownership, which, over the last 30, 40 years, has been one of the biggest factors driving buildup of wealth.

是的。這是一個非常好的問題，索漢姆。我想說，MI 在兩黨的立場上都處於有利位置。我覺得從消費者的角度來看，我們是一個真正幫助消費者實現置業夢想的產品。我們實際上幫助消費者透過擁有住房踏上財富累積的道路，在過去的 30、40 年裡，這一直是推動財富累積的最大因素之一。

So I think from our mission, our purpose perspective, if you think about a Democratic administration, our priorities are very aligned. If you think of number of first-time homebuyers, we are putting in homes in a low affordability environment. I think in the most recent quarter, 60-plus percent of our consumers were first-time homebuyers.

因此，我認為從我們的使命、目標的角度來看，如果你考慮民主黨政府，我們的優先事項是非常一致的。如果您考慮到首次購屋者的數量，我們正在將房屋置於負擔能力較低的環境中。我認為在最近一個季度，我們 60% 以上的消費者是首次購屋者。

So we are very tied to the mission and purpose and very aligned with FHFA and the GSEs in terms of their priorities. If you think about a Republican administration, I think from a product perspective, we are also putting private capital ahead of taxpayer risk.

因此，我們與使命和目標緊密相連，並且在優先事項方面與 FHFA 和 GSE 非常一致。如果你考慮共和黨政府，我認為從產品的角度來看，我們也將私人資本置於納稅人風險之上。

So whether it comes to us competing with FHA program in terms of putting private capital ahead of FHA, we are serving a good purpose there. And then obviously, as you think about GSEs, us getting in first loss position in front of the GSEs accomplishes that purpose of putting private capital in front of taxpayer capital, which I think has served well in the past.

因此，無論是我們與 FHA 計劃競爭，還是將私人資本置於 FHA 之上，我們都是為了一個好的目的。顯然，當你想到政府支持企業時，我們在政府支持企業之前處於第一個虧損位置，實現了將私人資本置於納稅人資本之前的目的，我認為這在過去起到了很好的作用。

As far as GSE reform is concerned, obviously, that's been a topic of discussion for whatever, 16 years since GSEs went into conservatorship. So, the odds of that are difficult to call at this point of time because a lot of things have to line up for the reform to happen just given the number of considerations in play.

顯然，就 GSE 改革而言，自 GSE 進入託管以來 16 年以來，這一直是人們討論的話題。因此，目前很難預測這種可能性，因為鑑於考慮的因素很多，改革的實施必須要做很多事情。

Thank you, sir.

謝謝您，先生。

Rick Shane from JPMorgan.

摩根大通的里克謝恩。

Hey, guys. Thanks for taking my questions this morning. Look, one of the most interesting evolutions over the last two or three years has been the understanding or the appreciation that a lower volume, high persistency environment is actually potentially more favorable than a high volume, lower persistency environment.

嘿，夥計們。感謝您今天早上回答我的問題。看，過去兩三年最有趣的演變之一是理解或認識到較低容量、高持久性的環境實際上可能比高容量、較低持久性的環境更有利。

As we shift potentially in rates and could see a pickup in mortgage volumes, I'm curious how you guys are thinking about this? Especially because at this point, portfolios in the industry are so barbelled in a way that we've never seen before with huge cohorts at very low rate underlying mortgages and a growing cohort of higher rate mortgages that are probably refinanceable?

隨著利率可能發生變化，抵押貸款數量可能會增加，我很好奇你們對此有何看法？尤其是因為在這一點上，該行業的投資組合以一種我們以前從未見過的方式受到如此大的衝擊，大量的抵押貸款利率非常低，而越來越多的高利率抵押貸款可能可以再融資？

Yes, Rick, thank you for your question. I would say, given the composition of our portfolio, and we disclosed some details from a mortgage rate perspective on Slide 9 of our earnings presentation, I think the portfolio is very well positioned from consumers who actually are incented to refinance in this environment or even if rates start falling, you can see that only 4% of our book was how we define in the money from a refinance perspective. And then more importantly, 78% of our policies are actually have a mortgage rate of below 6%.

是的，瑞克，謝謝你的問題。我想說，考慮到我們投資組合的構成，並且我們在收益報告的幻燈片9 上從抵押貸款利率的角度披露了一些細節，我認為該投資組合對於那些實際上有動力在這種環境下進行再融資的消費者來說非常有利，甚至如果利率開始下降，您可以看到我們書中只有 4% 是從再融資角度定義貨幣的。更重要的是，我們78%的保單實際上抵押貸款利率低於6%。

So mortgage rates will actually, in our assessment, we'll have to go closer to 5.5% for that population to start coming into an economic incentive to refinance. Obviously, there are life events where people actually simply upgrade their homes or downsize their homes.

因此，根據我們的評估，抵押貸款利率實際上必須接近 5.5%，才能開始對再融資產生經濟誘因。顯然，在某些生活事件中，人們實際上只是升級他們的房屋或縮小他們的房屋。

But in terms of refinance incentive, a good portion of our existing book actually doesn't have refinanced incentive even if mortgage rates were to fall by, let's say, 150 to 175 basis points. From market perspective and from a potential perspective for our business, I think an ideal scenario is as mortgage rates come down and affordability gets better, we actually start getting much higher origination market for MI industry because a lot of consumers who are in the sidelines are first-time homebuyers.

但就再融資誘因而言，即使抵押貸款利率下降（比方說，150 至 175 個基點），我們現有書籍中的很大一部分實際上沒有再融資激勵。從市場角度和我們業務的潛在角度來看，我認為理想的情況是，隨著抵押貸款利率下降和負擔能力變得更好，我們實際上開始為MI 行業獲得更高的起源市場，因為許多處於觀望狀態的消費者首次購屋者。

And as I said earlier, within first-time homebuyers, the usage of our product is at a very high level. That ratio sits somewhere closer to 60% of all first-time homebuyers use our product to get into homes. So you actually have a growing market, but at the same time, our insurance in force has more stickiness because consumers have a low enough rate that they are not refinancing out of their mortgage from a rate perspective.

正如我之前所說，在首次購屋者中，我們產品的使用率非常高。該比例接近 60% 的首次購屋者使用我們的產品購屋。因此，您實際上擁有一個不斷增長的市場，但與此同時，我們有效的保險具有更大的粘性，因為消費者的利率足夠低，從利率角度來看，他們不會從抵押貸款中進行再融資。

Got it. And could you see a scenario where some of the less affordable riskier portions of your portfolio that sort of boils off a little bit faster and those borrowers actually move into more -- even more affordable mortgages?

知道了。您是否會看到這樣一種情況：您的投資組合中一些不太負擔得起的風險較高的部分會更快地蒸發，而這些借款人實際上會轉向更多甚至更負擔得起的抵押貸款？

Absolutely. That is always possible, Rick. So if you think about consumers who actually have higher rate or are higher LTVs, obviously, there's an incentive as they build equity in their homes. Whether it's through home price appreciation or amortization, you can see them having a higher refinance incentive.

絕對地。這總是有可能的，瑞克。因此，如果你考慮一下那些實際上擁有更高利率或更高 LTV 的消費者，顯然，他們在房屋中建立資產淨值是有動力的。無論是透過房價升值還是攤銷，你都可以看到他們有更高的再融資誘因。

I would say that we have one of the benefits of having been in business for 40-plus years is we actually have a lot of data where we can model those scenarios and actually look at which consumer cohorts based on all risk attributes, including mortgage rates, have a higher propensity to refinance, and that's baked into our expectations when we run the business.

我想說，我們經營 40 多年的好處之一是，我們實際上擁有大量數據，我們可以對這些場景進行建模，並根據所有風險屬性（包括抵押貸款利率）實際查看哪些消費者群體，有更高的再融資傾向，這已融入我們經營業務時的期望。

Thank you very much for taking my questions this morning. Bose George from KBW.

非常感謝您今天早上回答我的問題。來自 KBW 的博斯喬治。

Hey, good morning, everyone. This is actually Alex on for Bose. Maybe just to start relating to the updated capital return guide. I'm just wondering if you could maybe discuss the drivers of the higher guidance and maybe specifically on this, if this is being driven by better return expectations versus maybe slower growth expectations?

嘿，大家早安。這實際上是 Alex 為 Bose 所做的。也許只是開始與更新的資本回報指南相關。我只是想知道您是否可以討論更高指導的驅動因素，也許特別是在這一點上，這是否是由更好的回報預期而不是較慢的成長預期驅動的？

Thanks. Yes, Alex. Thanks for the question. I really don't think it's the latter, but let me go to the drivers. I think it's a lot of the considerations we said as it relates to where we'll perform in the range are also the considerations for why we increased from a discrete number to the range of $300 million to $350 million. It starts with business performance.

謝謝。是的，亞歷克斯。謝謝你的提問。我真的不認為是後者，但讓我去找司機。我認為我們所說的許多考慮因素都與我們在該範圍內的表現有關，這也是我們從離散數字增加到 3 億至 3.5 億美元範圍的考慮因素。它從業務績效開始。

I think business performance has been very strong. We don't have a prescribed payout ratio, but certainly business performance is a key consideration as we think about both setting the capital return target at the beginning of the year and then modifying that throughout the year.

我認為業務表現非常強勁。我們沒有規定派息率，但業務績效無疑是關鍵考慮因素，因為我們考慮在年初設定資本回報目標，然後在全年修改該目標。

I think the economic environment is another key consideration. I talked about some modest improvement from our perspective on the economic environment that led to the reduction in the claim rate this quarter.

我認為經濟環境是另一個關鍵考慮因素。我談到了從我們對經濟環境的角度來看，一些適度的改善導致了本季的索賠率下降。

That carries over into our decisions to what to do about return of capital for the remainder of the year. And then lastly, regulatory. I think the regulatory environment is conducive to increasing from a discrete number to a range. The form of that is going to be dictated by several factors. We talked about the form in sort of a waterfall type approach.

這會影響我們今年剩餘時間如何處理資本返還的決定。最後是監管。我認為監管環境有利於從離散數字增加到範圍。其形式將由幾個因素決定。我們以瀑布式方法討論了形式。

The fact that we have a lot of we put a lot of certainty into our quarterly dividends and the way we establish them. And then share buybacks are kind of that opportunistic tool based on market conditions, and we I think we mentioned last quarter, we have a preference for share buybacks, all things market conditions being conducive. And then special dividend is the plug to return capital based on our objectives if we can't do so versus the other two forms.

事實上，我們有很多股息，我們對季度股息及其製定方式充滿了確定性。然後，股票回購是一種基於市場狀況的機會主義工具，我想我們在上個季度提到過，我們傾向於股票回購，所有市場條件都有好處。然後，如果我們無法與其他兩種形式相比，特別股息是根據我們的目標返還資本的插頭。

Yes. Alex, just to completely agree with Dean, just to add one aspect of business performance versus market growth. Given the NIW numbers, we have delivered and obviously need a little bit more information to assess market size. But the guidance we had provided for MI market size at the beginning of the year is actually very much in line with where we believe MI market size is trending at this point in the year.

是的。亞歷克斯（Alex），只是完全同意迪恩（Dean）的觀點，只是添加業務績效與市場成長的一方面。鑑於 NIW 數據，我們已經提供了信息，並且顯然需要更多信息來評估市場規模。但我們在年初為 MI 市場規模提供的指導實際上非常符合我們認為今年此時 MI 市場規模的趨勢。

So I don't think it's a market slowdown because I think the market is actually trending very much in line with expectations. We have mentioned before that we launched Enact Re last year. We continue to grow that business, and we have described that as growing that business in months, quarters, years, not in a very short term, but that growth continues to go in the right direction. So completely agree that this is driven by business performance versus slower growth.

所以我不認為這是市場放緩，因為我認為市場趨勢實際上非常符合預期。我們之前提到過，我們去年推出了 Enact Re。我們繼續發展該業務，我們將其描述為在幾個月、幾個季度、幾年內實現業務成長，而不是在很短的時間內，但這種成長繼續朝著正確的方向發展。因此完全同意這是由業務績效而非成長放緩所驅動的。

Okay, great. That all makes sense. And then maybe just one other follow-up on the capital return. And I think we just went over a little bit, but just thinking about where our shares trade versus peers that they do screen a little cheap at the moment on. But is there maybe a price-to-book level that you think about where we could potentially see maybe more capital return through the special dividend as opposed to on repurchases, just given where shares currently trade on the recent share performance?

好的，太好了。這一切都是有道理的。然後也許只是資本回報的另一個後續行動。我認為我們只是稍微討論了一下，但只是想一下我們的股票與目前篩選出的同行相比，我們的股票交易情況如何。但是，您認為是否存在一個市淨率水平，考慮到當前股票交易的近期股票表現，我們可能會透過特別股息而不是回購看到更多的資本回報？

Yes, Alex, on our share buyback program, we look at a lot of different factors. Obviously, price to book is one, forward price to book is another. We have our own view of intrinsic value. So we kind of triangulate those views and others as we think about setting the appropriate targets for use of share buyback as a means to return capital.

是的，亞歷克斯，在我們的股票回購計畫中，我們考慮了許多不同的因素。顯然，預訂價格是一個，遠期預訂價格是另一個。我們對內在價值有自己的看法。因此，當我們考慮設定適當的目標以利用股票回購作為資本返還的手段時，我們對這些觀點和其他觀點進行了三角測量。

So I wouldn't go into a prescription of a certain current period price to book. There are more considerations, maybe a little bit more complexity to it than that. I will just reemphasize our -- we said it last quarter, I think we still have the perspective that we have a preference for returning capital via share buybacks, assuming market conditions accommodate. And we still retain special dividend as a means if that doesn't hold.

因此，我不會按照當前某個時期的價格進行預訂。還有更多的考慮因素，也許比這更複雜。我將再次強調我們上個季度所說的觀點，我認為我們仍然傾向於透過股票回購來返還資本，假設市場條件允許。如果這種情況不成立，我們仍然保留特別股息作為一種手段。

Okay, great. Thanks so much.

好的，太好了。非常感謝。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Mihir Bhatia from Bank of America.

美國銀行的米希爾·巴蒂亞 (Mihir Bhatia)。

Hi, good morning. Thanks for taking my questions. I wanted to start first just on the premium. You mentioned the premium environment is constructive. I guess the question really is, have premium rates troughed for now? Do you expect the base premium rate to just kind of maybe slowly grind a little bit higher as the new loans come in? Or is there a potential still for declines in the premium rate?

嗨，早安。感謝您回答我的問題。我想先從溢價開始。你提到優質環境是建設性的。我想真正的問題是，保費率現在已經觸底了嗎？您是否預期隨著新貸款的增加，基本保費率可能會慢慢上升一點？或者說保費率還有下降的可能嗎？

Yes. Mihir, thanks for the question. I think we've talked about this several times in the past, but this base premium rate is impacted by a number of different variables. As you know, new insurance written levels, NIW rate, persistency, mix, even premium refund estimates, all impact the base premium rate.

是的。米希爾，謝謝你的提問。我想我們過去已經多次討論過這個問題，但這個基本保費率受到許多不同變數的影響。如您所知，新的保險承保水準、國家利益豁免率、持續性、組合，甚至保費退款預估，都會影響基本保費率。

So that complexity can cause quarterly variation. I think our view is that base rates are going to continue to stabilize, and we'd expect a flattish base premium rates throughout the year. From my perspective, the 2,10 basis point increase in sequential quarter basis is really in line with that flattish expectation. So I wouldn't equate that to a bottoming out.

因此，這種複雜性可能會導致季度變化。我認為我們的觀點是基本費率將繼續穩定，我們預計全年基本費率將持平。在我看來，環比成長 2.10 個基點確實符合這種平穩的預期。所以我不會將其等同於觸底反彈。

Okay. And then in terms of sorry, if I missed this, but did you guys give a market size, the NIW market size. I think last quarter, you had said similar to last year. Is that still the view?

好的。抱歉，如果我錯過了這一點，你們有沒有給出市場規模，也就是 NIW 市場規模。我認為上個季度，您所說的與去年類似。現在還是這樣的景色嗎？

Yes. So we gave a market expectation of full year and that full year expectation was generally in line with 2023. We gave that guidance, I believe, in February and I believe 2023 was $285 billion. I think as we navigate towards the end of the year and rates coming down recently, you could see some upside to that. But right now, I think that $285 billion or somewhere close. So that sounds pretty good.

是的。所以我們給了全年的市場預期，全年預期與2023年基本一致。我相信我們在 2 月就給了這項指導，我相信 2023 年的收入將達到 2850 億美元。我認為，隨著年底的臨近以及最近利率的下降，您可能會看到一些好處。但現在，我認為這個數字是 2,850 億美元或接近的數字。所以這聽起來不錯。

Okay. And then I guess the last question is just on the voluntary separation program. I just wanted to understand, is that should we take from that I guess what is the driver of that? Is it just efficiency improvements? Or is it the market has been a little slower to come back than you had maybe anticipated?

好的。我想最後一個問題只是關於自願離職計劃。我只是想了解，我們是否應該從中學到教訓，我猜這的驅動因素是什麼？只是效率的提升嗎？或者市場的恢復速度是否比您預期的要慢一些？

Yes, Mihir. So just as a reminder, this is not the first voluntary separation program or the first reduction we have done from an expense perspective. We are very expense conscious and are always working towards making our business efficient through the right processes and the right investments. We announced to the market that in December of 2022, we had done our voluntary separation program, and that was also driven by a very similar investments and outcomes.

是的，米希爾。因此，提醒一下，這不是第一個自願離職計劃，也不是我們從費用角度進行的第一次削減。我們非常注重費用，並始終致力於透過正確的流程和正確的投資來提高我們的業務效率。我們向市場宣布，我們已於 2022 年 12 月完成了自願離職計劃，這也是由非常相似的投資和結果所推動的。

So we have invested in our business and our technology and processes for the last 10 years. When you think about examples like our underwriting productivity, our underwriting productivity has increased consistently over the last 10 years. And as we achieved new milestones in that journey, it gives us an ability to make our business more efficient.

因此，過去 10 年我們對我們的業務、技術和流程進行了投資。當您考慮像我們的承保生產力這樣的例子時，我們的承保生產力在過去 10 年中持續成長。隨著我們在此歷程中實現新的里程碑，它使我們有能力提高業務效率。

So think of this as along that journey as we make investments in technology processes data and we get the benefit of those investments, we use those opportunities to make the business more efficient. So that was the driver of the recent reduction.

因此，可以將其視為沿著這一旅程，當我們對技術流程數據進行投資時，我們會從這些投資中受益，我們會利用這些機會來提高業務效率。這就是最近減少的驅動因素。

And I think as Dean stated that it basically equated to about $3 million of separation costs. And we'll come back as we approach the end of the year to give a new run rate. Obviously, these separations have some kind of working notice. So it's going to have a limited impact on 2024 expenses. But as we think about 2025 expenses, we will take a complete and comprehensive look at the business and provide expense guidance as we start 2025.

我認為正如 Dean 所說，這基本上相當於約 300 萬美元的離職成本。當接近年底時，我們會回來給出新的運行率。顯然，這些分離有某種工作通知。因此，這對 2024 年支出的影響有限。但當我們考慮 2025 年支出時，我們將全面全面地審視業務，並在 2025 年開始時提供支出指導。

Yes. The only thing I'd add to that, Mihir, to pick this up right where Rohit left off is that $3 million restructuring charge obviously isn't in our full year guidance of $220 million to $225 million for 2024.

是的。Mihir，我要補充的唯一一點是，300 萬美元的重組費用顯然不在我們 2024 年 2.2 億至 2.25 億美元的全年指引中。

Mihir, one thing I should have said just to round out the answer, if you think about our Insurance In-Force, we are now at the highest Insurance In-Force, we've ever had $256 billion. And from an employee count perspective, our business has never been more efficient. So hopefully, that kind of connects the dots between our strategy, how do we kind of invest in technology and processes and then harvest the benefits of that.

Mihir，為了完善答案，我應該說一件事，如果你考慮我們的有效保險，我們現在處於有效保險的最高水平，我們有 2560 億美元。從員工數量的角度來看，我們的業務從未如此有效率。因此，希望這能將我們的策略、我們如何投資技術和流程，然後收穫其中的好處之間的點連結起來。

Geoffrey Dunn from Dowling.

來自道林的傑弗裡·鄧恩。

Thanks. Good morning. Dean, can you disclose the amount of development that was in the current period provision this quarter?

謝謝。早安.Dean，您能否透露本季本期撥備中的開發金額？

Yes, that's losses on news were 60 million in the quarter.

是的，該季度新聞損失為 6000 萬美元。

Yes. How much of that was development related to 10% going to 9%?

是的。其中有多少與 10% 到 9% 的發展有關？

Yes. Great question, Geoff, sorry. So if you break out the $77 million into its piece parts, about $56 million of that is related to elevated cure activity and about $21 million is related to the reduction of the claim rate from 10% to 9%. And as I mentioned in a prior answer, that's really focused on the second half 2023 through first quarter 2024 accident quarters. We booked new delinquencies at the 9%. So there is no favorable development relative to that $60 million losses on news.

是的。很好的問題，傑夫，抱歉。因此，如果將 7,700 萬美元分解為各個部分，其中約 5,600 萬美元與治療活動的提高有關，約 2,100 萬美元與索賠率從 10% 降低到 9% 有關。正如我在先前的回答中提到的，這實際上集中在 2023 年下半年到 2024 年第一季的事故季度。我們以 9% 的價格預訂了新的拖欠款。因此，與新聞報導造成的 6000 萬美元損失相比，並沒有什麼有利的發展。

Okay. So first quarter ran from prior year.

好的。因此，第一季與去年同期相比。

Yes. Prior periods.

是的。前期。

Got it. All right. And then more of a macro question. What are some of the softer MSAs you're watching right now?

知道了。好的。然後更多的是宏觀問題。您現在正在觀看哪些較軟的 MSA？

Yes, Jeff, this is Rohit. It's tough to give guidance on specific geographies. I would just say that, that's part of our commercial strategy. So I don't want to discuss it on an earnings call. We do deploy our pricing and risk appetite strategy at an MSA level. So rest assured that both from an experience perspective as well as market data sourcing perspective, we basically are looking at different MSAs and putting that view forward in our risk appetite and pricing.

是的，傑夫，這是羅希特。很難針對特定地區提供指導。我只想說，這是我們商業策略的一部分。所以我不想在財報電話會議上討論這個問題。我們確實在 MSA 層級部署了我們的定價和風險偏好策略。因此，請放心，無論是從經驗角度還是市場數據採購角度，我們基本上都會研究不同的 MSA，並在我們的風險偏好和定價中提出這一觀點。

If I was just to use the market, I would say, like use a smaller market like Boise, where you basically might have seen a run-up. And during the COVID time period in terms of inflow of population and then once COVID ended, that population basically went back to where they came from. And as a result, there's been less activity there. So we use all the way data from that as well as economic activity data at an MSA level to project where markets might be going.

如果我只是為了利用市場，我會說，就像使用像博伊西這樣的較小市場，在那裡你基本上可能會看到上漲。在新冠疫情期間，就人口流入而言，一旦新冠疫情結束，這些人口基本上又回到了原來的地方。結果，那裡的活動減少了。因此，我們使用所有數據以及 MSA 級別的經濟活動數據來預測市場可能走向。

And then last question, can you talk a little bit about how execution looks between the traditional XOL versus ILN markets? It seems like we're still kind of on the XOL side of things. I'm just curious how ILNs are matching up?

最後一個問題，您能否談談傳統 XOL 與 ILN 市場之間的執行情況如何？看來我們還是站在 XOL 這邊。我只是好奇 ILN 是如何搭配的？

Yes. I think what we haven't been in the ILN market for a couple of quarters now. But I think both markets are performing very, very well. And what I mean by that is there's a little bit of imbalance between supply and demand. Obviously, mortgage insurers Enact included have lower NIW over the most recent periods.

是的。我認為我們已經有幾個季度沒有進入 ILN 市場了。但我認為這兩個市場的表現都非常非常好。我的意思是，供需之間存在一點不平衡。顯然，包括 Enact 在內的抵押貸款保險公司最近一段時間的 NIW 較低。

And so less capacity or less need for coverage, less coverage to acquire. And at the same time, you have new investors in the ILN market space, in the capital markets and new reinsurers coming into the traditional reinsurance market, providing additional capacity, and that's driving some favorability in terms, whether that's price or whether that's.

因此，容量減少或對覆蓋範圍的需求減少，所獲得的覆蓋範圍也減少。同時，ILN 市場空間、資本市場和新的再保險公司進入傳統再保險市場，提供了額外的容量，這推動了一些方面的支持，無論是價格還是其他方面。

So I'd say both markets look attractive, very attractive. Right now, our CRT plans for the second half of the year are probably pretty limited. We'll reconsider unless we do something more opportunistically. But I think our base plan is to go into 2025 with forward XOL and forward quota share capacity and bring that to market and hopefully take advantage of those attractive market conditions.

所以我想說這兩個市場看起來都很有吸引力，而且非常有吸引力。目前，我們下半年的 CRT 方案可能相當有限。除非我們採取更多機會主義的做法，否則我們會重新考慮。但我認為我們的基本計劃是進入 2025 年，提供遠期 XOL 和遠期配額份額產能，並將其推向市場，並希望利用這些有吸引力的市場條件。

That's helpful. Thank you.

這很有幫助。謝謝。

Thank you.

謝謝。

There are no further questions at this time. I would now like to turn the conference back to our speakers for any closing remarks.

目前沒有其他問題。現在我想請我們的發言人發表閉幕詞。

Thank you, Mickie. We appreciate everybody's interest in Enact. We will be hosting a fireside chat with JPMorgan tomorrow, and we will be attending JPMorgan Future of Financials Forum in mid-August. We look forward to seeing you at one of these events. Thank you.

謝謝你，米基。我們感謝大家對 Enact 的興趣。明天我們將與摩根大通舉行爐邊談話，並將參加八月中旬的摩根大通金融未來論壇。我們期待在其中一場活動中見到您。謝謝。

This concludes today's conference call. Thank you all for participating. You may now disconnect.

今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝大家的參與。您現在可以斷開連線。