Globe Life Cuts 2026 Outlook After United American Loss

The Tip Desk · October 25, 2026 · 4 min read

Net operating income was $4.84 a share as the insurer lowered full-year 2026 guidance to $15.35–$15.65 a share.

Globe Life Inc. (GL) adjusted full-year 2026 earnings guidance to a range of $15.35 to $15.65 a share after high-severity claims at Evry and a Medicare Supplement claims-processing delay at the United American General Agency division, rather than a fundamental change in the underlying core business, the life and health insurer said.

That range sits below the $15.55 to $15.95 outlook the company set after the second quarter. For the year ending December 31, 2027, Globe Life estimated net operating income of $16.10 to $17.10 a share, a 7.1% increase at the midpoint.

For the quarter ended September 30, 2026, net income was $4.62 a share, compared with $4.73 a year earlier. Net operating income was $4.84 a share, versus $4.81.

Total premium revenue grew 7% to $1.31 billion, matching the year-over-year premium growth reported in the prior two quarters. Health premium rose 16% to $446.9 million and life premium rose 2% to $864.6 million, shifting mix toward health (34% of premium) and away from life (66%).

Life insurance accounted for 80% of the company’s insurance underwriting margin for the quarter. Health insurance accounted for 20%.

Life underwriting margin declined 5% to $458.2 million, or 53% of premium, from $481.6 million, or 57% of premium. Health underwriting margin rose 7% to $115.6 million, or 26% of premium. Insurance underwriting income fell 4% to $481.8 million, or $6.16 a share, from $503.1 million, or $6.13 a share. Administrative expenses rose to $95.2 million. The ratio of administrative expenses to premium was 7.3%, the same as the year-ago quarter.

At American Income, life premium increased 4% to $470.4 million and life underwriting margin increased 3% to $268.5 million, or 57% of premium, after 5% premium and 4% margin growth in the prior quarter. Liberty National life net sales increased 7% to $26.0 million and life premium increased 4% to $102.0 million. Liberty National life underwriting margin fell 27% to $51.0 million, or 50% of premium, versus 10% margin growth in the prior quarter. The company said the Liberty National decline was due primarily to fluctuations in assumption updates; the margin excluding assumption updates was 36.3%, compared with 35.9% a year earlier.

Direct to Consumer life net sales fell 12% to $24.0 million and life premium fell 1% to $243.1 million. Total life net sales declined 1% to $149.1 million, reversing a 6% year-over-year increase in the first quarter.

Family Heritage health underwriting margin increased 12% to $56.8 million, or 44% of premium. Health premium increased 8% to $128.6 million and health net sales increased 5% to $34.6 million. American Income health underwriting margin rose 155% to $37.9 million, or 120% of premium, on $31.5 million of health premium.

United American health premium rose 29% to $219.3 million and health net sales rose 95% to $47.7 million. The division posted a $6.4 million underwriting loss, or 3% of premium, versus a $16.1 million profit, or 9% of premium, a year earlier. The company attributed the loss primarily to an underwriting loss at Evry of about $16 million and about $7 million of excess prior-period Medicare Supplement claims from a CMS processing delay.

Average producing agent count rose 9% year over year at Liberty National (4,187) and 1% at Family Heritage (1,565), while American Income agents fell 7% to 11,331.

Excess investment income rose 3% to $37.9 million, or $0.49 a share, from $36.9 million, or $0.45 a share. Net investment income rose 3% to $295.9 million. The fixed maturity portfolio earned an annual taxable equivalent effective yield of 5.33% during the third quarter, compared with 5.26% a year earlier.

The annual reserve assumption update produced a $120.5 million before-tax remeasurement gain ($96.4 million life, $24.1 million health), versus $134.3 million a year earlier.

Globe Life repurchased 1.1 million shares for $185 million in the quarter and raised full-year 2026 buyback guidance to $725 million to $775 million from $670 million to $700 million.