Comparison isn't always right, but still in this register of success, what can we say about the performance of his compatriot Oliver Bäte at the head of Allianz, other than that it's dazzling?
Unsurprisingly, the world's leading insurer took advantage of buoyant conditions in the sector - as evidenced by combined ratios below their historical averages - to close an excellent 2024 financial year.
Allianz's operating profit was up 9% over the past twelve months - a growth rate roughly comparable to that observed at Axa - and return on equity of 16.5% reached a twenty-year high.
This performance crowns a superb ten-year track record for Oliver Bäte, who took office in October 2014. On a like-for-like basis, earnings per share almost doubled over the period, while the dividend rose from EUR7.3 to EUR15.4 per share.
The good news is that management's three-year forecasts show no sign of a trend reversal - on the contrary. In fact, Allianz has always delivered better results than expected, except in 2020.
However, MarketScreener's analysts confess their apprehension. Notoriously cyclical, the insurance sector has been in insolent health for the past two or three years, with returns well above their historical averages.
This is all to the good for the sector's various players, but shareholders are bound to fear a backlash, for example in the event of a high claims ratio or a further fall in interest rates. At current valuation levels, which are also above their historical averages, the risk therefore appears acute.
Allianz is currently valued at x2.1 for shareholders' equity, i.e. twice its ten-year average, and x13 for earnings, i.e. close to the x15 ceiling on which the stock has often stumbled throughout the cycle.
