iA Financial Group has announced net income attributable to common shareholders of $220 million for the fourth quarter of 2024. This result is down 11% compared with the same quarter of 2023, when it stood at $248 million.

For the full year 2024, net income attributable to common shareholders totaled $942 million, compared with $769 million in 2023. This is an increase of 22%.

Denis Ricard, President and CEO of iA Financial Group, stated that this performance is attributable to continued strong business growth, particularly in individual insurance, both in Canada and the United States. 

During a conference call with analysts, Ricard underlined that he was particularly pleased with the 17% increase in premiums and deposits in the home and auto insurance segment in the fourth quarter.

In individual wealth management, gross sales of segregated funds approached $1.6 billion in the fourth quarter of 2024, up 87% over the same period last year. Net sales reached $2.9 billion for the full year, ranking the company first in Canada for this product.

Premiums and deposits  

Premiums and deposits reached $5.7 billion in the last quarter of 2024, up 39% from the $4.1 billion reported in the fourth quarter of 2023.

For the full year 2024, premiums and deposits totalled $20.4 billion, up 22% from the $16.8 billion reported in 2023.

By sector  

For insurance operations in Canada, which include a broad range of life insurance products, as well as vehicle warranties and property-casualty auto and home insurance, the company reported net income attributable to common shareholders of $41 million for the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with $41 million for the same quarter of 2023. This is a decrease of 5%.

For the full year 2024, this insurance segment reported net income attributable to common shareholders of $316 million, compared with $274 million in 2022. This is an increase of 15%.

For the Wealth Management segment, which includes savings plan, pension plan and segregated fund products and services, as well as brokerage and securities services on a trustee and mutual fund basis, net income attributed to common shareholders amounted to $101 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with $85 million for the same period in 2023. This is an increase of 19%.

For fiscal 2024, the Wealth Management segment posted net income attributable to common shareholders of $379 million, compared with $288 million in fiscal 2023. This is an increase of 32%.

The US Operations segment also includes dealer-related extended warranties. Net loss attributable to common shareholders was $13 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with a net loss of $7 million in the same quarter of 2023.

For fiscal 2024, the US Operations segment reported net income attributable to common shareholders of $28 million, compared with the $47 million reported in fiscal 2023. This is a decline of 40%.

The Investment segment includes the company's investment and financing activities, with the exception of the activities of the wealth management distribution subsidiaries. Net income attributable to common shareholders was $163 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with $181 million in the fourth quarter of 2023.

For the full year 2024, the Investments segment reported net income attributed to common shareholders of $440 million, compared with net income of $358 million reported for 2023. This is an increase of 23%.

The Corporate segment reported a loss attributable to common shareholders of $72 million in the fourth quarter of 2024, compared with a loss of $54 million in the fourth quarter of 2023. 

For fiscal 2024, the Corporate segment reported a net loss attributable to common shareholders of $221 million, compared with a net loss of $198 million in fiscal 2023.

Insurance results  

For the full year 2024, income from insurance activities exceeded $1 billion, compared with $853 million a year earlier. This is an increase of 22%.

By business segment in 2024, insurance results were as follows:

  • Canadian insurance operations achieved income of $526 million, compared with $442 million in 2023;
  • Wealth Management posted income of $361 million, compared with $282 million in 2023;
  • U.S. business generated insurance income of $153 million, compared with $129 million in 2023.
Key facts  

In its Management Discussion and Analysis, the company reported strong business growth in all its operating units.

Total capital stood at $8.8 billion at Dec. 31, 2024, with a solvency ratio of 139%. Some $635 million in additional capital was generated in 2024, compared to a target of $600 million.

The company reports that the Career network of 2,700 representatives performed “very well in 2024,” with life insurance products up 96% and living benefits up 14% over 2023.

For the Dealer Services segment, which serves 4,000 locations, the company reported a 4% increase in sales in 2024 to $715 million. Sales of credit insurance products were down 9%, but sales of property and casualty insurance related to the purchase and financing of a vehicle were up 10% over the previous year.

At the iA Auto and Home subsidiary, direct written premiums rose by 16% in 2024 to $600 million. The combined ratio was 89.5% in 2024, compared with 97.3% in 2023. The lower claims experience is “primarily due to favourable weather conditions, higher premium rates and lower auto theft frequency.” In particular, the company mentions that the impacts of the heavy rains of August 2024 were largely reinsured.

Other items 

At the conference with financial analysts, held on Feb. 19, Denis Ricard described the year 2024 as being “not exceptional” since the word exceptional means that it’s not going to happen again. Instead, he preferred to call it “an excellent year. That's the way we qualify it. It's repeatable. We're confident in our business model.”  

Assets under management stood at $259.4 billion at Dec. 31, 2024, up 18% over the $218.9 billion announced a year earlier.

Book value per share was $73.44 at Dec. 31, 2024, up 10% over the previous year.

In 2024, the company repurchased and cancelled some 6.6 million common shares for a total of $602 million.

With regard to its portfolio of commercial real estate investments, valued at $1.5 billion, iA reported in its management report that the occupancy rate of its buildings fell slightly in 2024 to 86%, compared with 87% in 2023. Office buildings account for almost 84% of real estate investments.

As for the mortgage portfolio, worth $1.2 billion, some 80% of these loans are related to multi-unit buildings. 

Denis Ricard is not particularly worried about a potential trade war between Canada and the United States. The company would not be directly hit by tariffs since it does not produce goods, pointed out. “At the end of the day…the US Government is trying to put more money into the pockets of their citizens…I believe that they would want to avoid inflation.” 

Nor does this uncertainty change the company's intention to pursue mergers or acquisitions in the US. “We're looking at opportunities on both sides of the border, so it hasn't changed anything,” says Ricard.