Global specialty insurance company Octave Specialty Group (formerly known as Ambac Financial Group) announced its first quarter 2026 financial results, reporting to shareholders a net profit of $13 million and a 92% increase in total revenue.
ask1 Net income to shareholders in 2026 increased significantly from the $3 million net loss reported in the first quarter of 2025.
Total revenue grew to $79 million, driven by a combination of strategic expansion and internal momentum; with a significant boost from the acquisition of ArmadaCare in October 2025.
Octave also maintained strong organic revenue growth of 42%. The company’s efficiency was equally impressive, with shareholder-adjusted EBITDA reaching $25 million, compared with $7 million in the first quarter of 2025.
Shareholder pre-tax income and adjusted EBITDA margins reached 16% and 32% respectively.
Claude LeBlanc, President and CEO of Octave, commented: “I am very pleased with our first quarter results. Our core insurance distribution business delivered 92% revenue growth, 42% organic growth, with the balance coming from our recently acquired ArmadaCare.
“Insurance distribution adjusted EBITDA increased to $25 million, nearly four times the year-ago quarter. The diversification of our distribution platform is a testament to the resilience and value of the Octave platform, and we delivered our strongest quarter to date, although we encountered some headwinds in certain market segments.”
Octave also reported that total property and casualty (P&C) premiums increased 66% during the quarter, surging to $531 million.
In specialty property and casualty insurance, Everspan and Octave reported gross and net premiums of $104 million and $32 million, respectively, an increase of 19% and 80%.
Net loss for the quarter was $8 million, compared with net income of $1 million in the first quarter of 2025.
Octave said its net loss in the first quarter of 2026 was primarily driven by losses and LAEs arising from settlements of potential litigation matters related to insurance claims.
Adjusted net income for the quarter was $1.2 million, compared with $1.5 million in the same period last year. Adjusted shareholder EBITDA was $1.6 million, an increase of 2% from the first quarter of 2025.
LeBlanc continued, “Everspan’s turnaround is also strong. Gross written premiums topped $100 million, up 19%, and net written premiums increased 80%. Unfortunately, we experienced some adverse developments during the quarter as a result of the resolution of potential litigation issues related to insurance claims for the runoff plan.”
“This loss is primarily attributable to legal expenses related to the settlement, which adversely impacted our reported quarterly underwriting results. But importantly, our proactive program first quarter loss ratio of 57% was in line with current incident year performance.”
“Overall, this quarter’s results reflect solid execution and reinforce our confidence in the strength of our business,” LeBlanc concluded.