Lancashire Holdings Limited (LRE.L)
Lancashire Holdings insures big, complex risks like offshore energy rigs, cargo ships, and aviation fleets.
Is Lancashire Holdings Limited a good stock for a UK beginner?
The honest version: There's no rating here and nothing for sale. In its favour: High return on equity pointing to efficient operations. Worth weighing: Revenue shrank slightly over the past year. Below, we lay out what it does, what its numbers mean, and the honest risks, so you can decide for yourself.
Over about 2 years to 2026-07-31. This is the share price only - reinvesting the dividends would add to it. Past performance is not a guide to the future, and it could just as easily have fallen.
How much has Lancashire Holdings Limited actually fallen?
Over the last 2 years of daily prices, Lancashire Holdings Limited fell as much as −27% from a high to a later low. Drops of this size are a normal part of owning a share - worth knowing in advance, so a dip doesn't come as a shock.
Worst peak-to-trough fall in the daily closing price over the period we hold. Past falls are not a forecast - it can fall further, or recover.
Based on beta - how much the price swings versus the whole market. Bumpier isn't bad; it just means a rougher ride, which matters more the sooner you might need the money.
Prices move on results, news and the mood of the whole market - no single headline explains a day, and a quiet week is usually just noise, not a signal.
consistent underwriting discipline compounding book value over several years
a cluster of severe multi-billion-dollar global catastrophes draining reserves
What does Lancashire Holdings Limited do?
When giant commercial ventures need protection against disasters they cannot afford to handle alone, they turn to specialty insurers like this one. Money comes in through the insurance premiums collected from policyholders, and gets paid out when catastrophes strike. The key piece to keep an eye on is how disciplined they remain when major storms or accidents happen, as paying claims eats directly into profits.
On our factor screen it looks strongest on value and income, and weakest on momentum.
- ✓Pays a dividend - about 2.9% a year
- !Revenue slipped about 5% over the year
- ✓Very profitable - turns about 21% of sales into profit
- ·Low P/E of 6 vs last year's earnings
- ✓Low debt - a sturdier balance sheet
- ✓Strong return on shareholder money (ROE 22%)
- Value screens high (80/100)
- Income screens high (71/100)
- High return on equity pointing to efficient operations
- Low price-to-earnings ratio compared to the wider market
- Steady dividend stream for income seekers
- Momentum screens low (26/100)
- A catastrophic storm season that wipes out underwriting profits
- Intense competition lowering the rates customers are willing to pay
- Inflation increasing the cost of repairing damaged assets and settling claims
What do Lancashire Holdings Limited's numbers mean?
Does Lancashire Holdings Limited pay a dividend?
Yes - Lancashire Holdings Limited currently pays a dividend of about 2.9% a year (the yearly payout as a share of the price). A dividend is a slice of profit handed to shareholders; the yield moves as the price moves, and a company can cut or stop it.
What do the numbers say about Lancashire Holdings Limited's dividend?
There's no rating here, and we don't judge whether the dividend will continue - that would be advice. Here are the figures income investors usually look at, and what each one means, so you can weigh it up yourself.
Figures are from the latest available data and can be distorted by one-off results. Past payments don't predict future ones, and a dividend can be cut at any time. This lays out the numbers to help you understand them - it is not a view on what will happen.
When does Lancashire Holdings Limited report earnings, and how did recent quarters go?
Lancashire Holdings Limited is next scheduled to report on about 2027-03-03 - dates can move, and we don't predict results; this just tells you when to look.
Each quarter a company reports its results against what analysts expected. ‘Beating’ or ‘missing’ is about that expectation, not whether the business is doing well in absolute terms.
| Reported | Expected EPS: The earnings per share analysts expected for the quarter - the average of their forecasts. 'Beating' or 'missing' is measured against this number. | Actual EPS | vs expected |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-02-09 | £0.05 | £0.12 | Beat +134% |
| 2020-03-10 | £0.17 | £0.12 | Missed -31% |
| 2019-07-25 | £0.13 | £0.06 | Missed -53% |
| 2019-02-14 | £-0.16 | £-0.07 | Beat +56% |
| 2018-11-01 | £-0.14 | £-0.12 | Beat +12% |
| 2018-07-26 | £0.15 | £0.17 | Beat +13% |
Across the last 6 quarters here, Lancashire Holdings Limited came in ahead of what analysts expected 4 times. One quarter is noise, not a trend.
See who else reports over the next two weeks →
Reported vs expected earnings per share (EPS) from published results; the expectation is the analyst consensus, not our view. Report dates are estimates that can move.
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What are the scenarios for Lancashire Holdings Limited?
An illustrative range for the year ahead, with the assumption behind each case — not a prediction or a price target.
What are the pros and cons of Lancashire Holdings Limited?
How many points the write-up makes each way — a balance check, not a score or verdict.
- High return on equity: How much profit the company makes for each £1 shareholders have put in. Higher usually means a more efficient business. pointing to efficient operations
- Low price-to-earnings ratio compared to the wider market
- Steady dividend stream for income seekers
- Lower than average share price volatility
- Revenue shrank slightly over the past year
- Vulnerable to unpredictable, high-cost disaster events
- Earnings can swing wildly depending on global catastrophe losses
- A catastrophic storm season that wipes out underwriting profits
- Intense competition lowering the rates customers are willing to pay
- Inflation increasing the cost of repairing damaged assets and settling claims
The write-up's own warning lights — if these start happening, the case above changes.
- Consecutive quarters of declining return on equity
- A permanent shift towards lower insurance pricing across the global market
Built from public filings & market prices, checked for an education-only tone, and never a price target. How we make these →
This plain-English summary was auto-generated on 2026-08-02 from public data and checked for an education-only, no-advice tone (the figures above carry their own, usually fresher, 'as of' date). It's information, never a recommendation.