Global life reinsurance provider Reinsurance Group of America (NYSE: RGA) reported Q1 CY2026 results exceeding the market’s revenue expectations, with sales up 21.6% year on year to $6.49 billion. Its non-GAAP profit of $6.97 per share was 16.3% above analysts’ consensus estimates.

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Tony Cheng, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented, “RGA delivered a strong start to 2026, with first quarter performance exceeding expectations across many regions and businesses. The results reflect disciplined execution, strong underlying fundamentals, and the continued benefits of our diversified global platform.

Company Overview

Operating behind the scenes of the insurance industry since 1973, Reinsurance Group of America (NYSE: RGA) provides life and health reinsurance services to insurance companies, helping them manage risk and meet regulatory requirements.

Revenue Growth

In general, insurance companies earn revenue from three primary sources. The first is the core insurance business itself, often called underwriting and represented in the income statement as premiums earned. The second source is investment income from investing the “float” (premiums collected upfront not yet paid out as claims) in assets such as fixed-income assets and equities. The third is fees from various sources such as policy administration, annuities, or other value-added services. Over the last five years, Reinsurance Group of America grew its revenue at an impressive 11% compounded annual growth rate. Its growth beat the average insurance company and shows its offerings resonate with customers.

We at StockStory place the most emphasis on long-term growth, but within financials, a half-decade historical view may miss recent interest rate changes, market returns, and industry trends. Reinsurance Group of America’s annualized revenue growth of 9% over the last two years is below its five-year trend, but we still think the results suggest healthy demand. Note: Quarters not shown were determined to be outliers, impacted by outsized investment gains/losses that are not indicative of the recurring fundamentals of the business.

This quarter, Reinsurance Group of America reported robust year-on-year revenue growth of 21.6%, and its $6.49 billion of revenue topped Wall Street estimates by 0.8%.

Net premiums earned made up 76.3% of the company’s total revenue during the last five years, meaning insurance operations are Reinsurance Group of America’s largest source of revenue.

Markets consistently prioritize net premiums earned growth over investment and fee income, recognizing its superior quality as a core indicator of the company’s underwriting success and market penetration.

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Book Value Per Share (BVPS)

Insurers are balance sheet businesses, collecting premiums upfront and paying out claims over time. Premiums collected but not yet paid out, often referred to as the float, are invested and create an asset base supported by a liability structure. Book value per share (BVPS) captures this dynamic by measuring these assets (investment portfolio, cash, reinsurance recoverables) less liabilities (claim reserves, debt, future policy benefits). BVPS is essentially the residual value for shareholders.

We therefore consider BVPS very important to track for insurers and a metric that sheds light on business quality. While other (and more commonly known) per-share metrics like EPS can sometimes be lumpy due to reserve releases or one-time items and can be managed or skewed while still following accounting rules, BVPS reflects long-term capital growth and is harder to manipulate.

Reinsurance Group of America’s BVPS grew at a sluggish 2.7% annual clip over the last five years. However, BVPS growth has accelerated recently, growing by 18.7% annually over the last two years from $143.92 to $202.93 per share.

Over the next 12 months, Consensus estimates call for Reinsurance Group of America’s BVPS to shrink by 9% to $168.62, a sour projection.

Key Takeaways from Reinsurance Group of America’s Q1 Results

We were impressed by how significantly Reinsurance Group of America blew past analysts’ book value per share expectations this quarter. We were also glad its EPS outperformed Wall Street’s estimates. Zooming out, we think this was a solid print. The stock remained flat at $213.48 immediately following the results.

Sure, Reinsurance Group of America had a solid quarter, but if we look at the bigger picture, is this stock a buy? The latest quarter does matter, but not nearly as much as longer-term fundamentals and valuation, when deciding if the stock is a buy. We cover that in our actionable full research report which you can read here (it’s free).