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UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
_________________________
FORM 10-Q
_________________________(Mark One)
QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the Quarter Ended Septemberquarterly period ended June 30, 20172021
OR
TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For the transition period from ___________    to ___________

Commission File No. 001-12257
 ______________________________
MERCURY GENERAL CORPORATION
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
 ________________________________
California95-2211612
(State or other jurisdiction of

incorporation or organization)
(I.R.S. Employer

Identification No.)
4484 Wilshire Boulevard Los Angeles, California90010
Los Angeles,California90010
(Address of principal executive offices)(Zip Code)
Registrant’s telephone number, including area code: (323) 937-1060
 _______________________________
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title of Each ClassTrading Symbol(s)Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered
Common StockMCYNew York Stock Exchange
Indicate by check mark whether the Registrantregistrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the Registrantregistrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.    Yes  ý    No  o
Indicate by check mark whether the Registrantregistrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).    Yes  ý    No o
Indicate by check mark whether the Registrantregistrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and "emerging growth company" in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
Large accelerated filerýAccelerated filero
Non-accelerated filer
o  (Do not check if a smaller reporting company)
Smaller reporting companyo
Emerging growth companyo
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. o
Indicate by check mark whether the Registrantregistrant is a shell company (as defined in the Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act).    Yes o    No  ý
At October 26, 2017,July 29, 2021, the Registrantregistrant had issued and outstanding an aggregate of 55,332,07755,370,788 shares of its Common Stock.



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MERCURY GENERAL CORPORATION
INDEX TO FORM 10-Q
 
Page
Item 1
Item 2
Item 3
Item 4
Item 1
Item 1A
Item 2
Item 3
Item 4
Item 5
Item 6

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PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION
 
Item 1. Financial Statements


MERCURY GENERAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(in thousands)
June 30, 2021December 31, 2020
 (unaudited) 
ASSETS
Investments, at fair value:
Fixed maturity securities (amortized cost $3,595,994; $3,388,418)$3,761,777 $3,549,810 
Equity securities (cost $694,913; $695,150)870,556 803,851 
Short-term investments (cost $409,400; $376,547)408,471 375,609 
Total investments5,040,804 4,729,270 
Cash378,615 348,479 
Receivables:
Premiums621,704 599,070 
       Allowance for credit losses on premiums receivable(6,000)(10,000)
                    Premiums receivable, net of allowance for credit losses615,704 589,070 
Accrued investment income40,760 42,985 
Other10,309 10,730 
Total receivables666,773 642,785 
Reinsurance recoverables52,705 48,579 
Allowance for credit losses on reinsurance recoverables(91)
             Reinsurance recoverables, net of allowance for credit losses52,705 48,488 
Deferred policy acquisition costs250,823 246,994 
Fixed assets (net of accumulated depreciation $296,747; $286,023)181,969 178,923 
Operating lease right-of-use assets36,896 40,554 
Current income taxes623 
Goodwill42,796 42,796 
Other intangible assets, net10,789 11,322 
Other assets34,155 38,635 
Total assets$6,696,948 $6,328,246 
LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY
Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves$2,091,015 $1,991,304 
Unearned premiums1,471,124 1,405,873 
Notes payable372,732 372,532 
Accounts payable and accrued expenses195,973 194,421 
Operating lease liabilities39,874 43,825 
Current income taxes10,426 
Deferred income taxes52,616 41,132 
Other liabilities294,983 236,136 
Total liabilities4,518,317 4,295,649 
Commitments and contingencies00
Shareholders’ equity:
Common stock without par value or stated value:
       Authorized 70,000 shares; issued and outstanding 55,371; 55,358
98,872 98,970 
 Retained earnings2,079,759 1,933,627 
Total shareholders’ equity2,178,631 2,032,597 
Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity$6,696,948 $6,328,246 
 September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016
 (unaudited)  
ASSETS   
Investments, at fair value:   
Fixed maturity securities (amortized cost $2,776,887; $2,795,410)$2,841,736
 $2,814,553
Equity securities (cost $479,410; $331,770)519,194
 357,327
Short-term investments (cost $366,512; $375,700)366,402
 375,680
Total investments3,727,332
 3,547,560
Cash284,639
 220,318
Receivables:   
Premium485,868
 459,152
Accrued investment income42,535
 41,205
Other18,041
 24,635
Total receivables546,444
 524,992
Deferred policy acquisition costs201,919
 200,826
Fixed assets (net of accumulated depreciation $335,477; $319,429)144,478
 155,910
Deferred income taxes30,339
 45,277
Goodwill42,796
 42,796
Other intangible assets, net21,611
 25,625
Other assets26,041
 25,414
Total assets$5,025,599
 $4,788,718
LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY   
Loss and loss adjustment expense reserves$1,372,164
 $1,290,248
Unearned premiums1,119,973
 1,074,437
Notes payable371,236
 320,000
Accounts payable and accrued expenses130,825
 112,334
Current income taxes13,173
 9,962
Other liabilities242,037
 229,335
Total liabilities3,249,408
 3,036,316
Commitments and contingencies

 

Shareholders’ equity:   
Common stock without par value or stated value:
       Authorized 70,000 shares; issued and outstanding 55,332; 55,289
97,523
 95,529
Retained earnings1,678,668
 1,656,873
Total shareholders’ equity1,776,191
 1,752,402
Total liabilities and shareholders’ equity$5,025,599
 $4,788,718



See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

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MERCURY GENERAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(in thousands, except per share data)
(unaudited)
 
 Three Months Ended June 30,Six Months Ended June 30,
 2021202020212020
Revenues:
Net premiums earned$926,820 $811,898 $1,842,741 $1,734,471 
Net investment income30,953 34,166 63,232 68,661 
Net realized investment gains (losses)58,805 158,426 100,496 (92,894)
Other2,197 1,353 5,402 3,915 
Total revenues1,018,775 1,005,843 2,011,871 1,714,153 
Expenses:
Losses and loss adjustment expenses657,228 495,300 1,283,572 1,146,970 
Policy acquisition costs150,984 149,706 315,414 306,240 
Other operating expenses70,927 71,103 136,485 147,660 
Interest4,235 4,268 8,577 8,523 
Total expenses883,374 720,377 1,744,048 1,609,393 
Income before income taxes135,401 285,466 267,823 104,760 
Income tax expense26,220 57,255 51,647 15,753 
Net income$109,181 $228,211 $216,176 $89,007 
Net income per share:
Basic$1.97 $4.12 $3.90 $1.61 
Diluted$1.97 $4.12 $3.90 $1.61 
Weighted average shares outstanding:
Basic55,371 55,358 55,366 55,358 
Diluted55,376 55,358 55,375 55,358 
 Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016 2017 2016
Revenues:       
Net premiums earned$801,205
 $790,850
 $2,388,641
 $2,337,256
Net investment income30,988
 30,371
 94,058
 91,440
Net realized investment gains (losses)20,718
 (15,465) 66,334
 54,973
Other5,446
 2,406
 9,675
 6,416
Total revenues858,357
 808,162
 2,558,708
 2,490,085
Expenses:       
Losses and loss adjustment expenses595,290
 576,316
 1,790,550
 1,765,484
Policy acquisition costs136,290
 140,203
 416,728
 421,685
Other operating expenses64,339
 59,006
 182,959
 178,000
Interest4,191
 1,012
 10,873
 2,922
Total expenses800,110
 776,537
 2,401,110
 2,368,091
Income before income taxes58,247
 31,625
 157,598
 121,994
Income tax expense11,762
 4,695
 32,500
 22,868
Net income$46,485
 $26,930
 $125,098
 $99,126
Net income per share:       
Basic$0.84
 $0.49
 $2.26
 $1.79
Diluted$0.84
 $0.49
 $2.26
 $1.79
Weighted average shares outstanding:       
Basic55,324
 55,259
 55,311
 55,238
Diluted55,334
 55,328
 55,323
 55,304
Dividends paid per share$0.6225
 $0.6200
 $1.8675
 $1.8600










































 

See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

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MERCURY GENERAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF SHAREHOLDERS’ EQUITY
(in thousands)
(unaudited)

 Three Months Ended June 30,Six Months Ended June 30,
 2021202020212020
Common stock, beginning of period$98,837 $98,863 $98,970 $98,828 
Proceeds from stock options exercised215 
Share-based compensation expense35 35 70 70 
Withholding tax on stock options exercised(383)
Common stock, end of period98,872 98,898 98,872 98,898 
Retained earnings, beginning of period2,005,600 1,524,581 1,933,627 1,700,674 
       Cumulative effect of adopting ASU 2016-13 (Note1)(2,014)
Retained earnings, beginning of period, as adjusted2,005,600 1,524,581 1,933,627 1,698,660 
Net income109,181 228,211 216,176 89,007 
Dividends paid to shareholders(35,022)(34,875)(70,044)(69,750)
Retained earnings, end of period2,079,759 1,717,917 2,079,759 1,717,917 
Total shareholders’ equity, end of period$2,178,631 $1,816,815 $2,178,631 $1,816,815 


































See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
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MERCURY GENERAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(in thousands)
(unaudited)

 Six Months Ended June 30,
 20212020
CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES
Net income$216,176 $89,007 
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization36,842 32,982 
Net realized investment (gains) losses(100,496)92,894 
(Increase) decrease in premiums receivable(26,634)271 
(Increase) decrease in reinsurance recoverables(4,217)28,566 
Changes in current and deferred income taxes435 (4,338)
Increase in deferred policy acquisition costs(3,829)(9,574)
Increase (decrease) in loss and loss adjustment expense reserves99,711 (56,145)
Increase in unearned premiums65,251 34,492 
Increase in accounts payable and accrued expenses375 48,778 
Share-based compensation70 70 
Other, net33,557 2,580 
Net cash provided by operating activities317,241 259,583 
CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES
Fixed maturity securities available for sale in nature:
Purchases(574,598)(449,641)
Sales86,022 106,986 
Calls or maturities225,650 84,238 
Equity securities available for sale in nature:
Purchases(434,406)(680,955)
Sales466,292 564,635 
Calls3,000 
Changes in securities payable and receivable32,107 (2,219)
(Increase) decrease in short-term investments(1,126)159,112 
Purchases of fixed assets(17,802)(19,789)
Other, net973 12,555 
Net cash used in investing activities(216,888)(222,078)
CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES
Dividends paid to shareholders(70,044)(69,750)
Proceeds from stock options exercised215 
Payments on finance lease obligations(388)
Net cash used in financing activities(70,217)(69,750)
Net increase (decrease) in cash30,136 (32,245)
Cash:
Beginning of the year348,479 294,398 
End of period$378,615 $262,153 
SUPPLEMENTAL CASH FLOW DISCLOSURE
Interest paid$8,303 $8,298 
Income taxes paid, net$51,209 $20,091 

 Nine Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
CASH FLOWS FROM OPERATING ACTIVITIES   
Net income$125,098
 $99,126
Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by operating activities:   
Depreciation and amortization41,617
 39,580
Net realized investment gains
(66,334) (54,973)
Increase in premiums receivable(26,716) (37,965)
Gain on sale of fixed assets(3,307) 
Changes in current and deferred income taxes18,149
 22,494
Increase in deferred policy acquisition costs(1,093) (4,995)
Increase in loss and loss adjustment expense reserves81,916
 97,865
Increase in unearned premiums45,536
 52,838
Increase (decrease) in accounts payable and accrued expenses19,260
 (2,172)
Share-based compensation60
 107
Other, net42,279
 1,910
Net cash provided by operating activities276,465
 213,815
CASH FLOWS FROM INVESTING ACTIVITIES   
Fixed maturity securities available for sale in nature:   
Purchases(527,418) (742,671)
Sales86,970
 230,909
Calls or maturities436,479
 421,737
Equity securities available for sale in nature:   
Purchases(626,097) (535,155)
Sales480,293
 499,126
Calls7,100
 
Changes in securities payable and receivable(22,474) 17,272
Changes in short-term investments and purchased options11,169
 (24,366)
Purchase of fixed assets(14,275) (12,874)
Sale of fixed assets6,239
 3
Other, net
 3,186
Net cash used in investing activities(162,014) (142,833)
CASH FLOWS FROM FINANCING ACTIVITIES   
Dividends paid to shareholders(103,303) (102,783)
     Employee taxes paid with shares related to share-based compensation
 (3,269)
Proceeds from stock options exercised2,162
 706
Net proceeds from issuance of senior notes371,011
 
Payoff of principal on loan and credit facilities(320,000) 
Net cash used in financing activities(50,130) (105,346)
Net increase (decrease) in cash64,321
 (34,364)
Cash:   
Beginning of the year220,318
 264,221
End of period$284,639
 $229,857
SUPPLEMENTAL CASH FLOW DISCLOSURE   
Interest paid$9,863
 $2,797
Income taxes paid$14,350
 $374














See accompanying Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

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MERCURY GENERAL CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(unaudited)


1. General


Consolidation and Basis of Presentation


The interim consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Mercury General Corporation and its subsidiaries (referred to herein collectively as the “Company”). For the list of the Company’s subsidiaries, see Note 1. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.2020. These interim financial statements have been prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), which differ in some respects from those filed in reports to insurance regulatory authorities. The financial data of the Company included herein are unaudited. In the opinion of management, all material adjustments of a normal recurring nature have been made to present fairly the Company’s financial position at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and the results of operations and cash flows for the periods presented. All intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated.


Certain financial information that is normally included in annual financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP, but that is not required for interim reporting purposes, has been omitted from the accompanying interim consolidated financial statements and related notes. Readers are urged to review the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 20162020 for more complete descriptions and discussions. Operating results and cash flows for the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2017.2021.


Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform to the current period presentation.


Use of Estimates


The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosures of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. These estimates require the Company to apply complex assumptions and judgments, and often the Company must make estimates about the effects of matters that are inherently uncertain and will likely change in subsequent periods. The most significant assumptions in the preparation of these consolidated financial statements relate to reserves for losses and loss adjustment expenses.expenses ("LAE"). Actual results could differ from those estimates. See Note 1. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.2020.
Earnings per Share


Potentially dilutive securities representing approximately 22,000 and 29,000 shares of common stock for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2016, respectively, were excluded from the computation of diluted earnings per common share because their effect would have been anti-dilutive. There were no0 potentially dilutive securities with anti-dilutive effect for the three and ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 2017.2021. Potentially dilutive securities representing approximately 67,500 shares of common stock were excluded from the computation of diluted income per common share for each of the three and six months ended June 30, 2020, because their effect would have been anti-dilutive.
Dividends per Share

The Company declared and paid a dividend per share of $0.6325 and $0.6300 during the three months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively, and dividends per share of $1.2650 and $1.2600 during the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively.
Deferred Policy Acquisition Costs


Deferred policy acquisition costs consist of commissions paid to outside agents, premium taxes, salaries, and certain other underwriting costs that are incremental or directly related to the successful acquisition of new and renewal insurance contracts and are amortized over the life of the related policy in proportion to premiums earned. Deferred policy acquisition costs are limited to the amount that will remain after deducting from unearned premiums and anticipated investment income, the estimated losses and loss adjustment expenses, and the servicing costs that will be incurred as premiums are earned. The
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Company’s deferred policy acquisition costs are further limited by excluding those costs not directly related to the successful acquisition of insurance contracts. Deferred policy acquisition cost amortization was $136.3$151.0 million and $140.2$149.7 million for the three months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016,2020, respectively, and $416.7$315.4 million and $421.7$306.2 million for the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016,2020, respectively. The Company does not defer advertising expenditures but expenses them as incurred. The Company recorded net advertising expense of approximately $32.0$11.6 million and $34.1$9.2 million for the ninethree months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016,2020, respectively, and $21.4 million and $20.8 million for the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively.



Reinsurance


Fixed AssetsUnearned premiums and loss and loss adjustment expense reserves are stated in the accompanying consolidated financial statements before deductions for ceded reinsurance. Unearned premiums and loss and loss adjustment expense reserves that are ceded to reinsurers are carried in other assets and reinsurance recoverables, respectively, in the Company's consolidated balance sheets. Earned premiums and losses and loss adjustment expenses are stated net of deductions for ceded reinsurance.

In August 2017,The Company is the assuming reinsurer under a Catastrophe Participation Reinsurance Contract (the "Contract") effective through December 31, 2021. The Company reimburses up to $31 million in losses for a proportional share of a portfolio of catastrophe losses under the Contract, to the extent the actual loss ratio exceeds the threshold loss ratio of 71%. If the actual loss ratio is less than the threshold loss ratio, the Company completedis eligible to receive a certain portion of the saleunderwriting profit.

The Company is party to a Catastrophe Reinsurance Treaty (the "Treaty") covering a wide range of perils that is effective through June 30, 2022. The Treaty provides $792 million of coverage on a per occurrence basis after covered catastrophe losses exceed the $40 million Company retention limit. The Treaty specifically excludes coverage for any Florida business and for California earthquake losses on fixed property policies, such as homeowners, but does cover losses from fires following an earthquake. The Treaty provides for one full reinstatement of coverage limits with a minor exception at the top coverage layer, and includes some additional minor territorial and coverage restrictions.

The effect of reinsurance on property and casualty premiums written and earned was as follows:

Three Months Ended June 30,Six Months Ended June 30,
2021202020212020
 (Amounts in thousands)
Premiums Written
Direct$963,418 $823,031 $1,910,024 $1,772,775 
Ceded(15,785)(10,041)(31,428)(21,399)
Assumed218 205 12,887 7,835 
     Net$947,851 $813,195 $1,891,483 $1,759,211 
Premiums Earned
Direct$931,833 $814,559 $1,852,900 $1,741,600 
Ceded(15,617)(11,818)(31,160)(25,563)
Assumed3,299 2,056 6,590 4,103 
     Net$919,515 $804,797 $1,828,330 $1,720,140 

The Company recognized ceded premiums earned of approximately $16 million and $12 million for the three months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively, and $31 million and $26 million for the six acres of land locatedmonths ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively, which are included in Brea, California (the "Property"), for a total sale price of approximately $12.2 million. Approximately $5.7 million of the total sale price was receivednet premiums earned in the form of a promissory note (the "Note") and the remainder in cash. The Note is secured by a first trust deed and an assignment of rents on the Property, and bears interest at an annual rate of 3.5%, payable in monthly installments. The Note matures in August 2020. Interest earned on the Note is recognized in other revenues in theits consolidated statements of operations. The Company recognized a gainceded losses and loss adjustment expenses of approximately $3.3$(4) million and $(15) million for the three months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively, and $(3) million and $(16) million for the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively, which are included in losses and loss adjustment expenses in its consolidated statements of operations. The negative ceded losses and loss adjustment expenses for the three and six months ended June 30, 2021 were primarily the result of favorable development on prior years' catastrophe losses that had been ceded to the sale transaction,Company's reinsurers. The negative ceded losses and loss adjustment expenses for the three and six months ended June 30, 2020 were primarily related to reimbursements from Pacific Gas and Electric Corporation ("PG&E") to the Company for certain past wildfire claims. These loss recoveries from PG&E were ceded to the Company's reinsurers as the original losses had previously been ceded to its reinsurers under the Treaty.

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The Company's insurance subsidiaries, as primary insurers, are required to pay losses to the extent reinsurers are unable to discharge their obligations under the reinsurance agreements.
Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606)

The Company's revenue from contracts with customers is commission income earned from third-party insurers by its 100% owned insurance agencies, which amounted to approximately $5.0 million and $4.5 million, with related expenses of $3.2 million and $3.2 million, for the three months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively, and $11.3 million and $9.2 million, with related expenses of $6.9 million and $6.2 million, for the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively. All of the commission income, net of related expenses, is included in other revenues in the Company's consolidated statements of operations, and in other income of the Property and Casualty business segment in the Company's segment reporting (see Note 13. Segment Information).

As of June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the Company had 0 contract assets and contract liabilities, and 0 remaining performance obligations associated with unrecognized revenues.

Capitalized Implementation Costs for Cloud Computing Arrangements

The majority of the Company's cloud computing arrangements relate to service contracts with third parties that host the Company's data and computing infrastructure that are used in providing services to and supporting transactions with its existing or potential policyholders and insurance agents. The balance of capitalized implementation costs for cloud computing arrangements, net of accumulated amortization, was $5.2 million and $4.8 million at June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively, which is included in other assets in the Company's consolidated balance sheets. The accumulated amortization was $3.4 million and $2.1 million at June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively. Amortization expense for capitalized implementation costs was $0.7 million and $0.4 million for the three months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively, and $1.3 million and $0.7 million for the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively, which is included in other operating expenses in the Company's consolidated statements of operations.


Allowance for Credit Losses
2. Recently Issued Accounting Standards

In May 2017, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2017-09, "Compensation - Stock Compensation (Topic 718), Scope of Modification Accounting." ASU 2017-09 provides guidance about which changes to the terms or conditions of a share-based payment award require an entity to apply modification accounting in Topic 718. ASU 2017-09 will be effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2018 with early adoption permitted. The Company does not anticipate that ASU 2017-09 will have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

In January 2017, the FASB issued ASU 2017-04, "Intangibles - Goodwill and Other (Topic 350), Simplifying the Test for Goodwill Impairment." ASU 2017-04 removes the requirement to compare the implied fair value of goodwill with its carrying amount as part of Step 2 of the goodwill impairment test and requires an entity to recognize an impairment charge for the amount by which the carrying amount of a reporting unit exceeds its fair value. An entity still has the option to perform the qualitative assessment for a reporting unit to determine if the quantitative impairment test is necessary. ASU 2017-04 will be effective for the Company beginningOn January 1, 2020, with early adoption permitted. The Company does not anticipate that ASU 2017-04 will have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

In October 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-16, "Income Taxes (Topic 740), Intra-Entity Transfers of Assets Other Than Inventory." ASU 2016-16 requires entities to recognize the income tax consequences of an intra-entity transfer of an asset other than inventory when the transfer occurs. Current GAAP prohibits the recognition of current and deferred income taxes for an intra-entity asset transfer until the asset has been sold to an outside party. ASU 2016-16 will be effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2018. The Company is evaluating the impact that ASU 2016-16 will have on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

In August 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-15, "Classification of Certain Cash Receipts and Cash Payments (Topic 230)." The new guidance is intended to reduce diversity in how certain transactions are classified in the consolidated statement of cash flows. ASU 2016-15 will be effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2018. The Company is evaluating the impact that ASU 2016-15 will have on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

In June 2016, the FASB issuedadopted ASU 2016-13, "Financial Instruments - Credit Losses (Topic 326)."along with certain additional ASUs on Topic 326 using a modified retrospective transition method, and recognized the cumulative-effect adjustment of approximately $2 million to the beginning retained earnings of 2020. The amendments in this ASU replacecumulative-effect adjustment primarily resulted from re-estimating credit losses on the outstanding balances of the Company's premiums receivable and reinsurance recoverables at the adoption date. Topic 326 replaces the "incurred loss" methodology for recognizing credit losses with a methodology that reflects expected credit losses and requires consideration of a broader range of information including past events, current conditions and reasonable and supportable forecasts that affect the collectibility of reported amounts offor financial assets that are not accounted for at fair value through net income. The Company's investment portfolio, which does not include accrued investment income, suchwas not affected by Topic 326 as loans, certain debt securities, trade receivables, net investment in leases, off-balance sheet credit exposures and reinsurance receivables. Underit applies the current GAAP incurred loss methodology, recognitionfair value option to all of its investments (see Note 4. Fair Value Option).

Premiums Receivable

The majority of the full amountCompany's premiums receivable are short-term in nature and are due within a year, consistent with the policy term of its insurance policies sold. Generally, premiums are collected prior to providing risk coverage, minimizing the Company's exposure to credit risk. In estimating an allowance for uncollectible premiums receivable, the Company assesses customer balances and write-offs by state, line of business, and the year the premiums were written. The estimated allowance is based on historical write-off percentages adjusted for the effects of current trends and reasonable and supportable forecasts, as well as expected recoveries of amounts written off.

The Company believes that the sustained high unemployment rate resulting from the outbreak of a novel strain of coronavirus (“COVID-19”) could lead to high uncollectible amounts over the life of the premiums receivable balances outstanding at June 30, 2021. In addition, the Company offered payment grace periods upon request from customers in 2020 following the outbreak of the pandemic, which added an element of uncertainty to the collectibility. The improving economy and declining unemployment rate contributed to the reduction in allowance for credit losses is generally delayed untilin the loss is probablefirst half of occurring. Current GAAP restricts the ability to record2021.





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The following table presents a summary of changes in allowance for credit losses thaton premiums receivable:
 Three Months Ended June 30,Six Months Ended June 30,
 2021202020212020
 (Amounts in thousands)
Beginning balance$7,000 $10,000 $10,000 $1,445 
    Cumulative effect of adopting ASU 2016-131,855 
Beginning balance, as adjusted7,000 10,000 10,000 3,300 
     Provision during the period for expected credit losses(390)719 (2,532)8,888 
Write-off amounts during the period(757)(885)(1,771)(2,543)
Recoveries during the period of amounts previously written off147 166 303 355 
Ending balance$6,000 $10,000 $6,000 $10,000 

Reinsurance Recoverables

Reinsurance recoverables are expected, but do not yet meetbalances due to the Company from its reinsurers for paid and unpaid losses and loss adjustment expenses. Generally, the Company uses a default analysis to estimate uncollectible reinsurance recoverables. The primary components of the default analysis are reinsurance recoverable balances by reinsurer, net of collateral and any liabilities held by the Company subject to a right of offset, and future default factors used to estimate the probability threshold. ASU 2016-13that the reinsurer may be unable to meet its future obligations in full. The determination of the future default factor is based on a historical default factor published by a major rating agency applicable to the particular financial strength rating class. AM Best's Financial Strength Ratings of the Company's reinsurers ranged between B++ and A++ at June 30, 2021. Based on its past experience with major catastrophes, the Company made the assumption that the majority of the reinsurance recoverable balances on unpaid losses outstanding at June 30, 2021 will be billed and collected or written off over the course of the next 5 years, and that the outstanding reinsurance recoverable balances on paid losses will be collected or written off within a year.

The following table presents a summary of changes in allowance for credit losses on reinsurance recoverables:
 Three Months Ended June 30,Six Months Ended June 30,
 2021202020212020
 (Amounts in thousands)
Beginning balance$$148 $91 $
    Cumulative effect of adopting ASU 2016-13159 
Beginning balance, as adjusted148 91 159 
     Provision during the period for expected credit losses(60)(91)(71)
Write-off amounts during the period
Recoveries during the period of amounts previously written off
Ending balance$$88 $$88 

Accrued Interest Receivables

The Company made certain accounting policy elections for its accrued interest receivables on the adoption date of Topic 326 as allowed: a) an election to present accrued interest receivable balances separately from the associated financial assets on the balance sheet, and b) an election not to measure an allowance for credit losses on accrued interest receivable amounts and instead write off uncollectible accrued interest amounts in a timely manner by reversing interest income. The Company did 0t have any cumulative-effect adjustment as a result of adopting Topic 326 for its accrued interest receivables. The Company's accrued interest receivable balances are included in accrued investment income receivable in its consolidated balance sheets. There were no accrued interest receivable amounts considered uncollectible or written off during the three and six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020.

2. Recently Issued Accounting Standards

In March 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued ASU 2020-04, "Reference Rate Reform
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(Topic 848), Facilitation of the Effects of Reference Rate Reform on Financial Reporting." ASU 2020-04 provides optional expedients and exceptions for applying GAAP to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions affected by reference rate reform if certain criteria are met. The amendments in this ASU apply only to contracts, hedging relationships, and other transactions that reference LIBOR or other interbank offered rates expected to be discontinued because of reference rate reform. ASU 2020-04 is effective for all entities as of March 12, 2020 through December 31, 2022. The Company expects to apply the Company beginningoptional expedients in this ASU to its unsecured credit facility that references LIBOR (see Note 11), when the facility is modified with the first quarter ending March 31, 2020. While thea replacement rate before LIBOR expires. The Company is in the process of evaluating the impact of ASU 2016-13, it does not expect this ASU to have aany material impact on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures as most of its financial instruments with potential exposure to material credit losses are accounted for at fair value through net income.

In March 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-09, "Compensation - Stock Compensation (Topic 718)," which simplifies several aspects of the accounting for share-based payment transactions, including the income tax consequences, classification of awards as either equity or liabilities, and classification on the statement of cash flows. The Company adopted ASU 2016-09 for the quarter ended March 31, 2017. As a result of the adoption, the Company recognizes excess tax benefits in its provision for income taxes rather than paid-in capital. Additional amendments to accounting for income taxes and minimum statutory withholding tax requirements had no impact to retained earnings as of January 1, 2017, where the cumulative effect of these changes are required to be recorded. The Company elected to continue to estimate forfeitures expected to occur to determine the amount of compensation cost to be recognized in each period. The Company also elected to apply the presentation requirements for cash flows related to excess tax benefits retrospectively to all periods presented, which resulted in an increase to both net cash provided by operating

activities and net cash used in financing activities of approximately $995,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2016. The adoption of the presentation requirements for cash flows related to employee taxes paid with shares resulted in an increase to both net cash provided by operating activities and net cash used in financing activities of approximately $3,270,000 for the nine months ended September 30, 2016.

In February 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-02, "Leases (Topic 842)," which supersedes the guidance in Accounting Standards Codification ("ASC") 840, "Leases." ASU 2016-02 requires a lessee to recognize lease assets and lease liabilities resulting from all leases. ASU 2016-02 retains the distinction between a finance lease and an operating lease. Lessor accounting is largely unchanged from ASC 840. ASU 2016-02 will be effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2019. However, in transition, the Company will be required to recognize and measure leases at the beginning of the earliest period presented using a modified retrospective approach. While the Company is in the process of evaluating the impact of ASU 2016-02, it does not expectapplying this ASU to have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements, except for recognizing lease assets and lease liabilities for its operating leases. The Company's lease obligations under various non-cancellable operating lease agreements amounted to approximately $27,000,000 at December 31, 2016.ASU.


In January 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-01, "Financial Instruments-Overall (Subtopic 825-10), Recognition and Measurement of Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities." The amendments in this ASU address certain aspects of recognition, measurement, presentation and disclosure of financial instruments. ASU 2016-01: (1) requires equity investments (except those accounted for under the equity method or those that result in the consolidation of the investee) to be measured at fair value with changes in the fair value recognized in net income; (2) simplifies the impairment assessment of equity investments without readily determinable fair values by requiring a qualitative assessment to identify impairment; (3) eliminates the requirement for public business entities to disclose the method(s) and significant assumptions used to estimate the fair value that is required to be disclosed for financial instruments measured at amortized cost on the balance sheet; (4) requires the use of the exit price notion when measuring the fair value of financial instruments for disclosure purposes; (5) requires separate presentation of financial assets and financial liabilities by measurement category and form of financial asset on the balance sheet or the notes to the financial statements; and (6) clarifies that an entity should evaluate the need for a valuation allowance on a deferred tax asset related to available-for-sale securities in combination with the entity’s other deferred tax assets. ASU 2016-01 will be effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2018. The Company does not anticipate that ASU 2016-01 will have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

In May 2014, the FASB issued ASU 2014-09, "Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606)." ASU 2014-09 requires entities to apply a five-step model to determine the amount and timing of revenue recognition. The model specifies, among other criteria, that revenue should be recognized when an entity transfers control of goods or services to a customer in the amount to which the entity expects to be entitled. In August 2015, the FASB issued ASU 2015-14, "Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606),Deferral of the Effective Date," which deferred the effective date of ASU 2014-09 for the Company to January 1, 2018. Subsequently, the FASB has issued additional ASUs on Topic 606 that do not change the core principle of the guidance in ASU 2014-09 but merely clarify certain aspects of it. The additional ASUs will also be effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2018. Two methods of transition are permitted upon adoption: full retrospective and modified retrospective. The Company is evaluating both methods of transition and it is currently anticipated that a modified retrospective adoption approach will be used. However, as the accounting for insurance contracts is outside of the scope of ASU 2014-09, the Company does not expect the adoption of this ASU to have a material impact on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.
3. Financial Instruments


Financial instruments recorded in the consolidated balance sheets include investments, note receivable, other receivables, options sold, total return swaps, accounts payable, and secured and unsecured notes payable. Due to their short-term maturities, the carrying values of other receivables and accounts payable approximate their fair values. All investments are carried at fair value in the consolidated balance sheets.


The following table presents the fair values of financial instruments:

September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016June 30, 2021December 31, 2020
   
(Amounts in thousands) (Amounts in thousands)
Assets   Assets
Investments$3,727,332
 $3,547,560
Investments$5,040,804 $4,729,270 
Note receivable5,585
 
Note receivable5,698 5,725 
Total return swaps
 667
Liabilities   Liabilities
Total return swaps$1,589
 $765
Options sold146
 20
Options sold167 
Secured notes
 140,000
Unsecured notes385,733
 180,000
Unsecured notes423,236 415,253 
Investments
The Company applies the fair value option to all fixed maturity and equity securities and short-term investments at the time an eligible item is first recognized. The cost of investments sold is determined on a first-in and first-out method and realized gains and losses are included in net realized investment gains (losses)or losses in the Company's consolidated statements of operations. See Note 4. Fair Value Option for additional information.


In the normal course of investing activities, the Company either forms or enters into relationships with variable interest entities ("VIEs"). A VIE is an entity that either has investors that lack certain essential characteristics of a controlling financial interest, such as simple majority kick-out rights, or lacks sufficient funds to finance its own activities without financial support provided by other entities. The Company performs ongoing qualitative assessments of the VIEs to determine whether the Company has a controlling financial interest in the VIE and therefore is the primary beneficiary. The Company is deemed to have a controlling financial interest when it has both the ability to direct the activities that most significantly impact the economic performance of the VIE and the obligation to absorb losses or right to receive benefits from the VIE that could potentially be significant to the VIE. Based on the Company's assessment, if it determines it is the primary beneficiary, the Company consolidates the VIE in its consolidated financial statements.


TheFrom time to time, the Company forms special purpose investment vehicles to facilitate its investment activities involving derivative instruments such as total return swaps, or limited partnerships such as private equity funds. These special purpose investment vehicles are consolidated VIEs as the Company has determined it is the primary beneficiary of such VIEs. Creditors have no recourse against the Company in the event of default by these VIEs. The Company had no implied or unfunded commitments to these VIEs at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016.2020. The Company's financial or other support provided to these VIEs and its loss exposure are limited to its collateral and original investment.


The Company also invests, directly or indirectly through its consolidated VIEs, in limited partnerships or limited liability companies such as private equity funds. These investments are non-consolidated VIEs as the Company has determined it is not the primary beneficiary.beneficiary of such VIEs. The Company's maximum exposure to loss with respect to these VIEs is limited to the total carrying value that is included in equity securities in the Company's consolidated balance sheets. At SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, the Company had no outstanding unfunded commitments to these VIEs whereby the Company may be called by the partnershipsVIEs during the commitment period to fund the purchase of new investments and the expenses of the partnerships.VIEs.
    
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Note Receivable
Note receivable was recognized as part ofIn August 2017, the Company completed the sale of approximately 6 acres of land located in August 2017 (SeeBrea, California (the "Property"), for a total sale price of approximately $12.2 million. Approximately $5.7 million of the total sale price was received in the form of a promissory note (the "Note") and the remainder in cash. The Note 1. General for additional informationis secured by a first trust deed and an assignment of rents on the sale transaction).Property, and bears interest at an annual rate of 3.5%, payable in monthly installments. The Note was originally set to mature on August 31, 2020. Effective August 1, 2020, the maturity date was extended to August 31, 2021, with no change in the annual interest rate. Effective August 1, 2021, the maturity date was further extended to August 31, 2022, with no change in the annual interest rate. Interest earned on the Note is recognized in other revenues in the Company's consolidated statements of operations. The Company elected to apply the fair value option to this securitythe Note at the time it was first recognized. The fair value of note receivable is included in other assets in the Company's consolidated balance sheets, while the changes in fair value of note receivable are included in net realized investment gains or losses inin the Company's consolidated statements of operations.operations.

Options Sold
The Company writes covered call options through listed and over-the-counter exchanges. When the Company writes an option, an amount equal to the premium received by the Company is recorded as a liability and is subsequently adjusted to the current fair value of the option written. Premiums received from writing options that expire unexercised are treated by the Company as realized gains from investments on the expiration date. If a call option is exercised, the premium is added to the proceeds from the sale of the underlying security or currency in determining whether the Company has realized a gain or loss. The Company, as

writer of an option, bears the market risk of an unfavorable change in the price of the security underlying the written option. Liabilities for covered call options are included in other liabilities in the Company's consolidated balance sheets.
Total Return Swaps
The fair values of the total return swaps reflect the estimated amounts that, upon termination of the contracts, would be received for selling an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction.
Secured Notes
The fair values of the Company’s $120 million secured note and $20 million secured note at December 31, 2016 approximate their carrying values.
Unsecured Notes
The fair value of the Company’s publicly traded $375 million unsecured notenotes at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2020 was obtained from a third party pricing service. The fair value of the Company's $180 million unsecured note at December 31, 2016 approximates its carrying value.


For additional disclosures regarding methods and assumptions used in estimating fair values, see Note 5. Fair Value Measurements.


4. Fair Value Option


The Company applies the fair value option to all fixed maturity and equity investment securities and short-term investments at the time an eligible item is first recognized. In addition, the Company elected to apply the fair value option to the note receivable recognized as part of the sale of land in August 2017 (See Note 1. General for additional information on the sale transaction).2017. The primary reasons for electing the fair value option were simplification and cost-benefit considerations as well as the expansion of the use of fair value measurement by the Company consistent with the long-term measurement objectives of the FASB for accounting for financial instruments.


Gains or losses due to changes in fair value of financial instruments measured at fair value pursuant to application of the fair value option are included in net realized investment gains or losses in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations. Interest and dividend income on investment holdings are recognized on an accrual basis at each measurement date and are included in net investment income in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations, while interest earned on the note receivable is included in other revenues in the Company’s consolidated statements of operations.


The following table presents gains (losses) due to changes in fair value of investments and the note receivable that are measured at fair value pursuant to the application of the fair value option:
 Three Months Ended June 30,Six Months Ended June 30,
 2021202020212020
 (Amounts in thousands)
Fixed maturity securities$12,448 $50,251 $4,391 $238 
Equity securities32,421 111,940 66,942 (74,433)
Short-term investments(59)4,639 
    Total investments$44,810 $166,830 $71,342 $(74,193)
Note receivable(15)(1)(28)32 
       Total gains (losses)$44,795 $166,829 $71,314 $(74,161)
12
 Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016 2017 2016
        
 (Amounts in thousands)
Fixed maturity securities$9,796
 $(19,521) $45,705
 $20,913
Equity securities7,765
 (2,143) 14,227
 13,430
Short-term investments150
 532
 (89) 184
    Total investments17,711

(21,132)
59,843

34,527
Note receivable(103) 
 (103) 
       Total gains (losses)$17,608

$(21,132)
$59,740

$34,527

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5. Fair Value Measurements


The Company employs a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value. The fair value of a financial instrument is the amount that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date using the exit price. Accordingly, when market observable data are not readily available, the Company’s own assumptions are used to reflect those that market participants would be presumed to use in pricing the asset or liability at the measurement date.

Assets and liabilities recorded at fair value on the consolidated balance sheets are categorized based on the level of judgment associated with inputs used to measure their fair values and the level of market price observability, as follows:


Level 1Unadjusted quoted prices are available in active markets for identical assets or liabilities as of the reporting date.
Level 2
Pricing inputs are other than quoted prices in active markets, which are based on the following:
 
•     Quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets;
 
•     Quoted prices for identical or similar assets or liabilities in non-active markets; or
 
•     Either directly or indirectly observable inputs as of the reporting date.
Level 3Pricing inputs are unobservable and significant to the overall fair value measurement, and the determination of fair value requires significant management judgment or estimation.

In certain cases, inputs used to measure fair value may fall into different levels of the fair value hierarchy. In such cases, the level in the fair value hierarchy within which the fair value measurement in its entirety falls has been determined based on the lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety. Thus, a Level 3 fair value measurement may include inputs that are observable (Level 1 or Level 2) and unobservable (Level 3). The Company’s assessment of the significance of a particular input to the fair value measurement in its entirety requires judgment and consideration of factors specific to the asset or liability.

The Company uses prices and inputs that are current as of the measurement date, including during periods of market disruption. In periods of market disruption, the ability to observe prices and inputs may be reduced for many instruments. This condition could cause an instrument to be reclassified from Level 1 to Level 2, or from Level 2 to Level 3. The Company recognizes transfers between levels at either the actual date of the event or a change in circumstances that caused the transfer.

Summary of Significant Valuation Techniques for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities
The Company’s fair value measurements are based on the market approach, which utilizes market transaction data for the same or similar instruments.
The Company obtained unadjusted fair values on 97.9%98.4% of its investment portfolio at fair value from an independent pricing service. For 0.2% of its investment portfolio, classified as Level 3, the Company obtained specific unadjusted broker quotes based on net fund value and, to a lesser extent, unobservable inputs fromservice at least one knowledgeable outside security broker to determine the fair value as of SeptemberJune 30, 2017.2021.

Level 1 measurements - Fair values of financial assets and financial liabilities are obtained from an independent pricing service, and are based on unadjusted quoted prices for identical assets or liabilities in active markets. Additional pricing services and closing exchange values are used as a comparison to ensure that reasonable fair values are used in pricing the investment portfolio.
U.S. government bonds and agencies/Short-term/Short-term bonds: Valued using unadjusted quoted market prices for identical assets in active markets.
Common stock: Comprised of actively traded, exchange listed U.S. and international equity securities and valued based on unadjusted quoted prices for identical assets in active markets.
Money market instruments: Valued based on unadjusted quoted prices for identical assets in active markets.
Options sold: Comprised of free-standing exchange listed derivatives that are actively traded and valued based on unadjusted quoted prices for identical instruments in active markets.
Level 2 measurements - Fair values of financial assets and financial liabilities are obtained from an independent pricing service or outside brokers, and are based on prices for similar assets or liabilities in active markets or valuation models whose inputs are observable, directly or indirectly, for substantially the full term of the asset or liability. Additional pricing services are used as a comparison to ensure reliable fair values are used in pricing the investment portfolio.
Municipal securities: Valued based on models or matrices using inputs such as quoted prices for identical or similar assets in active markets.
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Mortgage-backed securities: Comprised of securities that are collateralized by residential and commercial mortgage loans valued based on models or matrices using multiple observable inputs, such as benchmark yields, reported trades and broker/dealer quotes, for identical or similar assets in active markets. The Company had holdings of $24.4$25.1 million and $30.0$17.6 million at September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016, respectively,fair value in commercial mortgage-backed securities.securities at June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively.

Corporate securities/Short-term bonds: Valued based on a multi-dimensional model using multiple observable inputs, such as benchmark yields, reported trades, broker/dealer quotes and issue spreads, for identical or similar assets in active markets.

Non-redeemable preferred stock: Valued based on observable inputs, such as underlying and common stock of same issuer and appropriate spread over a comparable U.S. Treasury security, for identical or similar assets in active markets.
Total return swaps: Valued based on multi-dimensional models using inputs such as interest rate yield curves, underlying debt/credit instruments and the appropriate benchmark spread for similar assets in active markets, observable for substantially the full term of the contract.
Collateralized loan obligations ("CLOs"): Valued based on underlying debt instruments and the appropriate benchmark spread for similar assets in active markets.
Other asset-backed securities: Comprised of securities that are collateralized by non-mortgage assets, such as automobile loans, valued based on models or matrices using multiple observable inputs, such as benchmark yields, reported trades and broker/dealer quotes, for identical or similar assets in active markets.
Note receivable: Valued based on observable inputs, such as benchmark yields, and considering any premium or discount for the differential between the stated interest rate and market interest rates, based on quoted market prices of similar instruments.
Level 3 measurements - Fair values of financial assets are based on inputs that are both unobservable and significant to the overall fair value measurement, including any items in which the evaluated prices obtained elsewhere wereare deemed to be of a distressed trading level.
Private equity fundsfund: Private equity funds, excluding aThe single private equity fund that was not measured at net asset value ("NAV"), are was valued based on underlying debt/credit instruments andinvestments of the appropriate benchmark spread forfund or assets similar assetsto such investments in active markets, taking into consideration specific unadjusted broker quotes based on net fund value and unobservable inputs from at least 1 knowledgeable outside security broker related to liquidity assumptions. This private equity fund was reclassified from Level 3 to private equity funds measured at net asset value at March 31, 2020, due to the use of the NAV practical expedient in measuring the fair value of the fund.
Fair value measurement using NAV practical expedient - The fair value of the Company's investment in private equity fundfunds measured at net asset value is determined using NAV as advised by the external fund managermanagers and the third party administrator.administrators. The NAV of the Company's limited partnership or limited liability company interest in thissuch a fund is based on the manager's and the administrator's valuation of the underlying holdings in accordance with the fund's governing documents and GAAP. In accordance with applicable accounting guidance, this investment,private equity funds measured at fair value using the NAV practical expedient isare not classified in the fair value hierarchy. The strategy of two of the fundthree such funds with a fair value of approximately $81.6 million at June 30, 2021 is to provide current income to investors by investing mainly in equity tranches and sub-investment grade rated debt tranches ofsecured loans, CLOs or CLO issuers, in the new and secondary markets, and equity interests in vehicles established to purchase and warehouse loansloans; the strategy of the other such fund with a fair value of approximately $1.2 million at June 30, 2021 is to achieve favorable long-term financial returns and measurable positive social and environmental returns by investing in anticipation of a CLO closing or to satisfy regulatory risk retention requirements associated with certain CLOs.privately held technology, healthcare, specialty consumer goods and service companies. The Company has made all of its capital contributions in the fund during the third quarter of 2017these funds and had no outstanding unfunded commitments at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 with respect to this fund.the funds. The underlying assets of the fundfunds are expected to be liquidated over the period of approximately one year to fivenine years from June 30, 2021. In addition, the final closing of the fund, which is expected to occur during the fourth quarter of 2017. The Company does not have the contractual optionability to redeem or withdraw from the funds, or to sell, assign, pledge or transfer its investment, without the consent from the General Partner or Managers of each fund, but will receive distributions based on the liquidation of the underlying assets and the interest proceeds from the underlying assets. In addition, the Company does not have the ability to withdraw from the fund, or to sell, assign, pledge or transfer its investment, without the consent from the general partner of the fund.
The Company’s financial instruments at fair value are reflected in the consolidated balance sheets on a trade-date basis. Related unrealized gains or losses are recognized in net realized investment gains or losses in the consolidated statements of operations. Fair value measurements are not adjusted for transaction costs.






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The following tables present information about the Company’s assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis, and indicate the fair value hierarchy of the valuation techniques utilized by the Company to determine such fair values:


 June 30, 2021
 Level 1Level 2Level 3Total
 (Amounts in thousands)
Assets
Fixed maturity securities:
U.S. government bonds$14,279 $$$14,279 
Municipal securities2,845,983 2,845,983 
Mortgage-backed securities92,548 92,548 
Corporate securities283,407 283,407 
Collateralized loan obligations278,336 278,336 
Other asset-backed securities247,224 247,224 
Total fixed maturity securities14,279 3,747,498 3,761,777 
Equity securities:
Common stock733,546 733,546 
Non-redeemable preferred stock54,211 54,211 
Private equity funds measured at net asset value (1)
82,799 
Total equity securities733,546 54,211 870,556 
Short-term investments:
Short-term bonds5,010 5,010 
Money market instruments403,451 403,451 
Other10 10 
Total short-term investments403,461 5,010 408,471 
Other assets:
Note receivable5,698 5,698 
Total assets at fair value$1,151,286 $3,812,417 $$5,046,502 
Liabilities
Other liabilities:
Options sold$167 $$$167 
Total liabilities at fair value$167 $$$167 
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September 30, 2017 December 31, 2020
Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total Level 1Level 2Level 3Total
       
(Amounts in thousands) (Amounts in thousands)
Assets       Assets
Fixed maturity securities:       Fixed maturity securities:
U.S. government bonds and agencies$13,892
 $
 $
 $13,892
U.S. government bondsU.S. government bonds$13,816 $$$13,816 
Municipal securities
 2,483,750
 
 2,483,750
Municipal securities2,791,212 2,791,212 
Mortgage-backed securities
 32,726
 
 32,726
Mortgage-backed securities93,264 93,264 
Corporate securities
 161,883
 
 161,883
Corporate securities241,366 241,366 
Collateralized loan obligations
 94,325
 
 94,325
Collateralized loan obligations256,891 256,891 
Other asset-backed securities
 55,160
 
 55,160
Other asset-backed securities153,261 153,261 
Total fixed maturity securities13,892
 2,827,844
 
 2,841,736
Total fixed maturity securities13,816 3,535,994 3,549,810 
Equity securities:       Equity securities:
Common stock410,834
 
 
 410,834
Common stock691,782 0691,782 
Non-redeemable preferred stock
 30,665
 
 30,665
Non-redeemable preferred stock32,660 32,660 
Private equity funds
 
 8,684
 8,684
Private equity fund measured at net asset value (1)
      69,011
Private equity funds measured at net asset value (1)
Private equity funds measured at net asset value (1)
79,409 
Total equity securities410,834
 30,665
 8,684
 519,194
Total equity securities691,782 32,660 803,851 
Short-term investments:       Short-term investments:
Short-term bonds29,996
 18,893
 
 48,889
Short-term bonds21,999 4,929 26,928 
Money market instruments317,513
 
 
 317,513
Money market instruments348,676 348,676 
OtherOther
Total short-term investments347,509
 18,893
 
 366,402
Total short-term investments370,680 4,929 375,609 
Other assets:       Other assets:
Note receivable
 5,585
 
 5,585
Note receivable5,725 5,725 
Total assets at fair value$772,235
 $2,882,987
 $8,684
 $3,732,917
Total assets at fair value$1,076,278 $3,579,308 $$4,734,995 
Liabilities       
Other liabilities:       
Total return swaps$
 $1,589
 $
 $1,589
Options sold146
 
 
 146
Total liabilities at fair value$146

$1,589

$

$1,735
__________ 
(1) The fair value is measured using the NAV practical expedient; therefore, it is not categorized within the fair value hierarchy. The fair value amount is presented in this table to permit reconciliation of the fair value hierarchy to the amounts presented in the Company's consolidated balance sheets.

 December 31, 2016
 Level 1 Level 2 Level 3 Total
        
 (Amounts in thousands)
Assets       
Fixed maturity securities:       
U.S. government bonds and agencies$12,275
 $
 $
 $12,275
Municipal securities
 2,449,292
 
 2,449,292
Mortgage-backed securities
 39,777
 
 39,777
Corporate securities
 189,688
 
 189,688
Collateralized loan obligations
 86,525
 
 86,525
Other asset-backed securities
 36,996
 
 36,996
Total fixed maturity securities12,275
 2,802,278
 
 2,814,553
Equity securities:       
Common stock316,450
 
 
 316,450
Non-redeemable preferred stock
 31,809
 
 31,809
Private equity funds
 
 9,068
 9,068
Total equity securities316,450
 31,809
 9,068
 357,327
Short-term investments:       
Short-term bonds70,393
 20,233
 
 90,626
Money market instruments285,054
 
 
 285,054
Total short-term investments355,447
 20,233
 
 375,680
Other assets:      

Total return swaps
 667
 
 667
Total assets at fair value$684,172
 $2,854,987
 $9,068
 $3,548,227
Liabilities       
Other liabilities:       
Total return swaps$
 $765
 $
 $765
Options sold20
 
 
 20
Total liabilities at fair value$20
 $765
 $
 $785


The following table presents a summary of changes in fair value of Level 3 financial assets and financial liabilities:
Private Equity Fund
 Three Months Ended June 30,Six Months Ended June 30,
 2021202020212020
 (Amounts in thousands)
Beginning balance$$$$1,203 
     Realized losses included in earnings(1)
Settlements
Transfer out (1)
(1,202)
Ending balance$$$$
The amount of total gains or losses for the period included in earnings attributable to assets still held at June 30$$$$
  Private Equity Funds
  Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30,
  2017 2016 2017 2016
         
  (Amounts in thousands)
Beginning balance $8,764
 $8,972
 $9,068
 $10,431
     Realized (losses) gains included in earnings (80) 564
 (384) (895)
Ending balance $8,684
 $9,536
 $8,684
 $9,536
The amount of total (losses) gains for the period included in earnings attributable to assets still held at September 30 $(80) $564
 $(384) $(895)
__________ 

(1) The private equity fund was reclassified from Level 3 to private equity funds measured at net asset value at March 31, 2020, due to the use of the NAV practical expedient in measuring the fair value of the fund.

There were no0 transfers between Levels 1, 2, and 3 of the fair value hierarchy during the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016.2020. A private equity fund was reclassified from Level 3 to private equity funds measured at net asset value at March 31, 2020, as described above.

At SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, the Company did not have any nonrecurring fair value measurements of nonfinancial assets or
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nonfinancial liabilities.
Financial Instruments Disclosed, But Not Carried, at Fair Value
The following tables present the carrying value and fair value of the Company’s financial instruments disclosed, but not carried, at fair value, and the level within the fair value hierarchy at which such instruments are categorized:

 June 30, 2021
 Carrying ValueFair ValueLevel 1Level 2Level 3
 (Amounts in thousands)
Liabilities
Notes payable:
Unsecured notes$372,732 $423,236 $$423,236 $
 December 31, 2020
 Carrying ValueFair ValueLevel 1Level 2Level 3
 (Amounts in thousands)
Liabilities
Notes payable:
Unsecured notes$372,532 $415,253 $$415,253 $
 September 30, 2017
 Carrying Value Fair Value Level 1 Level 2 Level 3
          
 (Amounts in thousands)
Liabilities         
Notes payable:         
Unsecured notes$371,236
 $385,733
 $
 $385,733
 $
 December 31, 2016
 Carrying Value Fair Value Level 1 Level 2 Level 3
          
 (Amounts in thousands)
Liabilities         
Notes payable:         
Secured notes$140,000
 $140,000
 $
 $140,000
 $
Unsecured notes180,000
 180,000
 
 180,000
 
Secured Notes
The fair values of the Company’s $120 million secured note and $20 million secured note at December 31, 2016 were estimated based on assumptions and inputs, such as the market value of underlying collateral and reset rates, for similarly termed notes that are observable in the market. In addition, the fair values of these secured notes approximate their carrying values, as the interest rates on these securities are variable and approximate current market interest rates.
Unsecured Notes
The fair value of the Company’s publicly traded $375 million unsecured notenotes at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2020 was based on the spreads above the risk-free yield curve. These spreads are generally obtained from the new issue market, secondary trading and broker-dealer quotes.
The fair value of the Company's $180 million unsecured note at December 31, 2016 was based on the unadjusted quoted price for similar notes in active markets. In addition, the fair value of this unsecured note approximates its carrying value, as the interest rate on this security is variable and approximates current market interest rates.
See Note 11. Notes Payable for additional information on secured and unsecured notes.

6. Derivative Financial Instruments


The Company is exposed to certain risks relating to its ongoing business operations. The primary risk managed by using derivative instruments is equity price risk. Equity contracts (options sold) on various equity securities are intended to manage the price risk associated with forecasted purchases or sales of such securities.

The From time to time, the Company also enters into derivative contracts to enhance returns on its investment portfolio.
On February 13, 2014, Fannette Funding LLC (“FFL”), a special purpose investment vehicle formed and consolidated by the Company, entered into a total return swap agreement with Citibank. Under the agreement, FFL receives the income equivalent on underlying obligations due to Citibank and pays to Citibank interest on the outstanding notional amount of the underlying obligations. The total return swap is secured by approximately $30 million of U.S. Treasuries as collateral, which are included in short-term investments on the consolidated balance sheets. The Company paid interest, which was equal to LIBOR plus 145 basis points prior to the renewal of the agreement in January 2017 and LIBOR plus 128 basis points subsequent to the renewal, on approximately $98 million and $108 million of underlying obligations as of September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016, respectively. The agreement had an initial term of one year, subject to annual renewal. In January 2017, the agreement was renewed for an additional year expiring February 17, 2018, and the interest rate was changed to LIBOR plus 128 basis points.

On August 9, 2013, Animas Funding LLC (“AFL”), a special purpose investment vehicle formed and consolidated by the Company, entered into a three-year total return swap agreement with Citibank, which has been renewed for an additional one-year term through February 17, 2018. The total portfolio of underlying obligations was liquidated during June 2017, and the total return swap agreement between AFL and Citibank was terminated on July 7, 2017. Under the agreement, AFL received the income equivalent on underlying obligations due to Citibank and paid to Citibank interest on the outstanding notional amount of the underlying obligations. The total return swap was secured by approximately $40 million of U.S. Treasuries as collateral, which

were included in short-term investments on the consolidated balance sheets. The Company paid interest, which was equal to LIBOR plus 135 basis points prior to the amendment of the agreement in January 2017 and LIBOR plus 128 basis points subsequent to the amendment, on approximately $152 million of underlying obligations as of December 31, 2016.

The following tables present the location and amounts of derivative fair values in the consolidated balance sheets and derivative gains or losses in the consolidated statements of operations:
 Derivatives
June 30, 2021December 31, 2020
 (Amount in thousands)
Options sold - Other liabilities$167 $
Total$167 $
 Asset Derivatives Liability Derivatives
 September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016 September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016
        
 (Amounts in thousands)
Total return swaps - Other assets$
 $667
 $
 $
Options sold - Other liabilities
 
 146
 20
Total return swaps - Other liabilities
 
 1,589
 765
    Total derivatives$
 $667
 $1,735
 $785
 Gains Recognized in Net Income
 Three Months Ended June 30,Six Months Ended June 30,
2021202020212020
 (Amounts in thousands)
Options sold - Net realized investment gains (losses)$323 $8,944 783 10,656 
Total$323 $8,944 $783 $10,656 
 Gains (Losses) Recognized in Income
 Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016 2017 2016
        
 (Amounts in thousands)
Total return swaps - Net realized investment gains (losses)$118
 $4,172
 $(2,535) $7,915
Options sold - Net realized investment gains557
 1,030
 1,857
 3,324
      Total$675
 $5,202
 $(678) $11,239

Most options sold consist of covered calls. The Company writes covered calls on underlying equity positions held as an enhanced income strategy that is permitted for the Company’s insurance subsidiaries under statutory regulations. The Company manages the risk associated with covered calls through strict capital limitations and asset diversification throughout various industries. See Note 5. Fair Value Measurements for additional disclosures regarding options sold.
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7. Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets
Goodwill
There were no0 changes in the carrying amount of goodwill during the three and ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016.2020. NaN accumulated goodwill impairment losses existed at June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020. Goodwill is reviewed annually for impairment and more frequently if potential impairment indicators exist. NoNaN impairment indicators were identified during the three and ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016.2020. All of the Company's goodwill is associated with the Property and Casualty business segment (See Note 13. Segment Information for additional information on the reportable business segment).

Other Intangible Assets
The following table presents the components of other intangible assets:
Gross Carrying
Amount
Accumulated
Amortization
Net Carrying
Amount
Useful Lives
 (Amounts in thousands)(in years)
As of June 30, 2021:
Customer relationships$54,863 $(52,853)$2,010 11
Trade names15,400 (8,021)7,379 24
Technology4,300 (4,300)10
Insurance license1,400 — 1,400 Indefinite
Total other intangible assets, net$75,963 $(65,174)$10,789 
As of December 31, 2020:
Customer relationships$54,862 $(52,640)$2,222 11
Trade names15,400 (7,700)7,700 24
Technology4,300 (4,300)10
Insurance license1,400 — 1,400 Indefinite
Total other intangible assets, net$75,962 $(64,640)$11,322 
 
Gross Carrying
Amount
 
Accumulated
Amortization
 
Net Carrying
Amount
 Useful Lives
        
 (Amounts in thousands) (in years)
As of September 30, 2017:       
Customer relationships$52,430
 $(42,542) $9,888
 11
Trade names15,400
 (5,615) 9,785
 24
Technology4,300
 (3,762) 538
 10
Insurance license1,400
 
 1,400
 Indefinite
Total other intangible assets, net$73,530
 $(51,919) $21,611
  
        
As of December 31, 2016:    
  
Customer relationships$52,430
 $(39,332) $13,098
 11
Trade names15,400
 (5,133) 10,267
 24
Technology4,300
 (3,440) 860
 10
Insurance license1,400
 
 1,400
 Indefinite
Total other intangible assets, net$73,530
 $(47,905) $25,625
  


Other intangible assets are reviewed annually for impairment and more frequently if potential impairment indicators exist. NoNaN impairment indicators were identified during the three and ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016.2020.

Other intangible assets with definite useful lives are amortized on a straight-line basis over their useful lives. OtherAmortization expense for other intangible assets amortization expense was $1.3$0.3 million and $1.5$0.2 million for the three months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016,2020, respectively, and $4.0 million and $4.6$0.5 million for each of the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016, respectively.2020.


The following table presents the estimated future amortization expense related to other intangible assets as of SeptemberJune 30, 2017:2021:
YearAmortization Expense
 (Amounts in thousands)
Remainder of 2021$534 
20221,043 
2023879 
2024851 
2025807 
Thereafter5,275 
Total$9,389 
Year Amortization Expense
  (Amounts in thousands)
Remainder of 2017 $1,335
2018 5,335
2019 4,905
2020 758
2021 738
Thereafter 7,140
Total $20,211

8. Share-Based Compensation


In February 2015, the Company's Board of Directors adopted the 2015 Incentive Award Plan (the "2015 Plan"), replacing the 2005 Equity Incentive Plan which expired in January 2015. The 2015 Plan was approved at the Company's Annual Meeting of Shareholders in May 2015. A maximum of 4,900,000 shares of common stock are authorized for issuance under the 2015
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Plan upon exercise of stock options, stock appreciation rights and other awards, or upon vesting of restricted stock unit ("RSU") or deferred stock awards. As of June 30, 2021, the Company had 70,000 stock options granted that were exercised or outstanding, and 4,830,000 shares of common stock available for future grant under the 2015 Plan.

Share-based compensation expenseexpenses for all stock options granted or modified isare based on thetheir estimated grant-date fair value. The Company recognizes thesevalues. These compensation costs are recognized on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period of the award. The Company estimates forfeitures expected to occur in determining the amount of compensation cost to be recognized in each period. As of SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, all outstanding stock options have a term of ten years from the date of grant and become exercisable in four equal installments on the first through fourth anniversaries of the grant date. The fair value of stock option awards is estimated using the Black-Scholes option pricing model with the grant-date assumptions and weighted-average fair values.


In February 2015,2018, the Compensation Committee of the Company's Board of Directors adopted the 2015 Incentive Award Plan (the "2015 Plan"), replacing the 2005 Equity Incentive Plan (the "2005 Plan") which expired in January 2015. The 2015 Plan was approved at the Company's Annual Meetingawarded a total of Shareholders in May 2015. A maximum of 4,900,000 shares of common80,000 stock are authorized for issuanceoptions to 4 senior executives under the 2015 Plan upon exercisewhich will vest over the four-year requisite service period. 10,000 of these stock options were forfeited in February 2019 following the departure of a senior executive. The fair values of these stock options were estimated on the date of grant using a closed-form option valuation model (Black-Scholes).

The following table provides the assumptions used in the calculation of grant-date fair values of these stock options based on the Black-Scholes option pricing model:

Weighted-average grant-date fair value$8.09 
Expected volatility33.18 %
Risk-free interest rate2.62 %
Expected dividend yield5.40 %
Expected term in months72

Expected volatilities are based on historical volatility of the Company’s stock over the term of the stock options. The Company estimated the expected term of stock options, which represents the period of time that stock appreciation rightsoptions granted are expected to be outstanding, by using historical exercise patterns and other awards, or upon vestingpost-vesting termination behavior. The risk-free interest rate is determined based on U.S. Treasury yields with equivalent remaining terms in effect at the time of restricted stock unit ("RSU") or deferred stock awards. the grant.
As of SeptemberJune 30, 2017, 172,000 RSUs were outstanding and 4,728,000 shares2021, the Company had $0.1 million of commonunrecognized compensation expense related to stock were available for future issuancesoptions awarded under the 2015 Plan.


The Compensation Committee of the Company’s Board of Directors granted RSU awards to the Company’s senior management and key employeesPlan, which will vest based upon the Company's performance during three-year performance periods ending on December 31, 2017 and 2018:
 Grant Year
 2016 2015
Three-year performance period ending December 31,2018
 2017
Vesting shares, target (net of forfeited)84,750
 87,250
Vesting shares, maximum (net of forfeited)158,906
 163,594

The RSUs vest at the end of a three-year performance period beginning with the year of the grant, and then only if, and to the extent that, the Company’s performance during the performance period achieves the threshold established by the Compensation Committee of the Company’s Board of Directors. Performance thresholds are based on the Company’s cumulative underwriting income, annual underwriting income, and net earned premium growth.
In March 2017, a total of approximately $3.6 million was paid upon the vesting of 61,445 RSUs awarded in 2014 resulting from the attainment of performance goals above the target threshold during the three-year performance period ended December 31, 2016.
In February 2016, 88,074 shares of common stock, net of 58,822 shares withheld for payroll taxes, were issued upon the vesting of 146,896 RSUs awarded in 2013 resulting from the attainment of performance goals above the target threshold during the three-year performance period ended December 31, 2015.
As of September 30, 2017, 11,000 and 12,000 target RSUs granted in 2016 and 2015, respectively, were forfeited because the recipients were no longer employed by the Company.
The fair value of each RSU grant was determined based on the market price of the Company's common stock on the grant date for awards classified as equity and on each reporting date for awards classified as liability. Compensation cost is recognized based on management’s best estimate of the performance goals that will be achieved. If the minimum performance goals are not met, no compensation cost will be recognized and any recognizedratably over the remaining vesting period of approximately 0.6 years.
NaN share-based compensation cost will be reversed.
No stock options or RSUsawards were awardedgranted during the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 2017.2021.
9. Income Taxes


For financial statement purposes, the Company recognizes tax benefits related to positions taken, or expected to be taken, on a tax return only if the positions are “more-likely-than-not” sustainable. Once this threshold has been met, the Company’s measurement of its expected tax benefits is recognized in its consolidated financial statements.


There was a $38,000 increasewere 0 changes to the total amount of unrecognized tax benefits related to tax uncertainties during the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 2017. The increase was the result of tax positions taken regarding federal tax credits and state tax apportionment issues based on management’s best judgment given the facts, circumstances, and information available at the reporting date. The Company does not expect any changes in such unrecognized tax benefits to have a significant impact on its consolidated financial statements within the next 12 months.2021.


The Company and its subsidiaries file income tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service and the taxing authorities of various states. Tax years that remain subject to examination by major taxing jurisdictions are 20142017 through 20162019 for federal taxes, and 20032011 through 20162013 and 2017 through 2019 for California state taxes. TheFor tax years 2014 through 2016, the Company is currently under examination byreceived Notices of Proposed Assessments (“NPAs”) related to the Company’s California apportionment factor and paid the total assessment with interest to the California Franchise Tax Board (“FTB”("FTB") forin the third quarter of 2020. For tax years 20032011 through 2013. The FTB issued Notices of Proposed Assessments ("NPAs")2013, the Company received NPAs and submitted a formal protest to the Company forFTB in 2018. For tax years 20032017 through 2010, which the Company formally protested. The proposed adjustments for tax years 2003 through 2006 were affirmed following an administrative protest process with2019, the FTB examination. The Company isinitiated its examination in settlement discussions with the FTB and believes a reasonable settlement could be reached during 2017 or early 2018 with regard to tax years 2003 through 2010. fourth quarter of 2020.

If a reasonable settlement is not reached, the Company intends to pursue other options, including a formal hearing with the State Board of Equalization,FTB, an appeal with the California Office of Tax Appeals, or litigation in superior court.Superior Court. The FTB has not yet issued NPAs for the 2011 through 2013 tax years. ManagementCompany believes that the resolution of these examinations and assessments will not have a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements.position of the Company.


Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the estimated future tax consequences attributable to differences
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between the financial reporting basis and the respective tax basis of the Company’s assets and liabilities, and expected benefits of utilizing

net operating loss, capital loss, and tax-credit carryforwards. The Company assesses the likelihood that its deferred tax assets will be realized and, to the extent management does not believe these assets are more likely than not to be realized, a valuation allowance is established. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates or laws is recognized in earnings in the period that includes the enactment date.


At SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, the Company’s deferred income taxes were in a net assetliability position, which included a combination of ordinary and capital deferred tax expenses or benefits. In assessing the Company’s ability to realize deferred tax assets, management considers whether it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. The ultimate realization of deferred tax assets is dependent upon generating sufficient taxable income of the appropriate character within the carryback and carryforward periods available under the tax law. Management considers the reversal of deferred tax liabilities, projected future taxable income of an appropriate nature, and tax-planningtax planning strategies in making this assessment. The Company believes that through the use of prudent tax planning strategies and the generation of capital gains, sufficient income will be realized in order to maximize the full benefits of its deferred tax assets. Although realization is not assured, management believes that it is more likely than not that the Company’s deferred tax assets will be realized.


10. Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves


The following table presents the activity in loss and loss adjustment expense reserves:
 Six Months Ended June 30,
 20212020
 (Amounts in thousands)
Gross reserves, beginning of period$1,991,304 $1,921,255 
Reinsurance recoverables on unpaid losses, beginning of period(54,460)(76,100)
              Cumulative effect of adopting ASU 2016-13 for reinsurance recoverables on unpaid losses (1)
149 
Reinsurance recoverables on unpaid losses, beginning of period, as adjusted(54,460)(75,951)
Net reserves, beginning of period, as adjusted1,936,844 1,845,304 
Incurred losses and loss adjustment expenses related to:
Current year1,298,981 1,119,502 
Prior years(15,409)27,468 
Total incurred losses and loss adjustment expenses1,283,572 1,146,970 
Loss and loss adjustment expense payments related to:
Current year641,726 563,921 
Prior years539,871 612,773 
Total payments1,181,597 1,176,694 
Net reserves, end of period2,038,819 1,815,580 
Reinsurance recoverables on unpaid losses, end of period52,196 49,530 
Gross reserves, end of period$2,091,015 $1,865,110 
 Nine Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
    
 (Amounts in thousands)
Gross reserves at January 1 
$1,290,248
 $1,146,688
Less reinsurance recoverable(13,161) (14,253)
Net reserves at January 11,277,087
 1,132,435
Incurred losses and loss adjustment expenses related to:   
Current year1,772,203
 1,696,350
Prior years18,347
 69,134
Total incurred losses and loss adjustment expenses1,790,550
 1,765,484
Loss and loss adjustment expense payments related to:   
Current year1,099,656
 1,065,948
Prior years606,615
 601,379
Total payments1,706,271
 1,667,327
Net reserves at September 301,361,366
 1,230,592
Reinsurance recoverable10,798
 13,961
Gross reserves at September 30$1,372,164
 $1,244,553
__________ 

(1) See Note 1 for additional information on adoption of ASU 2016-13.

The decrease in the provision for insured events of prior years during the six months ended June 30, 2021 of $15.4 million was primarily attributable to lower than estimated losses and loss adjustment expenses in the commercial property and private passenger automobile lines of insurance business, partially offset by unfavorable development in the commercial automobile line of insurance business. The increase in the provision for insured events of prior years in 2017during the six months ended June 30, 2020 of approximately $18.3$27.5 million was primarily attributable to higher than estimated California automobilelosses and property losses.

The increaseloss adjustment expenses in the provision for insured events of prior years in 2016 of approximately $69.1 million primarily resulted from the re-estimation of losses for Californiacommercial automobile, homeowners and Florida private passenger automobile liability coverages.lines of insurance business.


For the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016,2020, the Company recorded catastrophe losses net of reinsurance of approximately $59$60 million and $23$14 million, respectively. The 2017 catastropheCatastrophe losses were primarily due to severe rainstorms in California, the impact of Hurricane Harveyevents that occurred during the six months ended June 30, 2021 totaled approximately $64 million, with no reinsurance benefits used for these losses, resulting primarily from the deep freeze and other extreme weather events in Texas and Hurricane Irma in Florida and Georgia, and storms and tornadoes in Oklahoma and Texas. The Winterwinter storms in California. These
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losses were partially offset by favorable development of approximately $4 million on prior years' catastrophe losses. Catastrophe losses due to the events that occurred during the six months ended June 30, 2020 totaled approximately $18 million, with no reinsurance benefits used for these losses, resulting primarily attributable to severe storms in Texas and Northernfrom extreme weather events outside of California and claims from the Sand Firewindstorms in Southern California. These losses were partially offset by favorable development of approximately $4 million on prior years' catastrophe losses.


11. Notes Payable


The following table presents information about the Company's notes payable:

  Lender Interest Rate Maturity Date September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016
           
        (Amounts in thousands)
Secured credit facility(1)
 Bank of America LIBOR plus 40 basis points December 3, 2018 $
 $120,000
Secured loan(1)
 Union Bank LIBOR plus 40 basis points December 3, 2017 
 20,000
Unsecured credit facility(1)
 Bank of America and Union Bank LIBOR plus 112.5-162.5 basis points December 3, 2019 
 180,000
Senior unsecured notes(2)
 Publicly traded 4.40% March 15, 2027 375,000
 
Unsecured credit facility(3)
 Bank of America and Wells Fargo Bank LIBOR plus 112.5-162.5 basis points March 29, 2022 
 
    Total principal amount       375,000
 320,000
Less unamortized discount and debt issuance costs(4)
       3,764
 
Total debt       $371,236
 $320,000
LenderInterest RateMaturity DateJune 30, 2021December 31, 2020
(Amounts in thousands)
Senior unsecured notes(1)
Publicly traded4.40%March 15, 2027$375,000 $375,000 
Unsecured credit facility(2)
Bank of America, Wells Fargo Bank, and U.S. BankLIBOR plus 112.5-150.0 basis pointsMarch 31, 2026
    Total principal amount375,000 375,000 
Less unamortized discount and debt issuance costs(3)
2,268 2,468 
Total debt$372,732 $372,532 
__________ 
(1)On March 8, 2017, the Company completed a public debt offering issuing $375 million of senior notes. The notes are unsecured, senior obligations of the Company with a 4.4% annual coupon payable on March 15 and September 15 of each year commencing September 15, 2017. These notes mature on March 15, 2027. The Company used the proceeds from the notes to pay off amounts outstanding under the existing loan and credit facilities and for general corporate purposes. The Company incurred debt issuance costs of approximately $3.4 million, inclusive of underwriters' fees. The notes were issued at a slight discount of 99.847% of par, resulting in the effective annualized interest rate including debt issuance costs of approximately 4.45%.
(2)On March 29, 2017, the Company entered into an unsecured credit agreement (the "2017 Credit Agreement") that provided for revolving loans of up to $50 million and was set to mature on March 29, 2022. On March 31, 2021, the Company entered into an amended and restated credit agreement (the "Amended and Restated Credit Agreement") that amended and restated the 2017 Credit Agreement. The Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, among other things, extended the maturity date of the loan that was the subject of the 2017 Credit Agreement to March 31, 2026, added U.S. Bank as an additional lender, and increased the aggregate commitments by all the lenders to $75 million from $50 million under the 2017 Credit Agreement. The interest rates on borrowings under the credit facility are based on the Company's debt to total capital ratio and range from LIBOR plus 112.5 basis points when the ratio is under 20% to LIBOR plus 150.0 basis points when the ratio is greater than or equal to 30%. Commitment fees for the undrawn portions of the credit facility range from 12.5 basis points when the ratio is under 20% to 22.5 basis points when the ratio is greater than or equal to 30%. The debt to total capital ratio is expressed as a percentage of (a) consolidated debt to (b) consolidated shareholders' equity plus consolidated debt. The Company's debt to total capital ratio was 14.7% at June 30, 2021, resulting in a 12.5 basis point commitment fee on the $75 million undrawn portion of the credit facility. As of July 29, 2021, there have been no borrowings under this facility.
(3)The unamortized discount and debt issuance costs are associated with the publicly traded $375 million senior unsecured notes. These are amortized to interest expense over the life of the notes, and the unamortized balance is presented in the Company's consolidated balance sheets as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of the debt. The unamortized debt issuance cost of approximately $0.2 million associated with the $75 million unsecured revolving credit facility maturing on March 31, 2026 is included in other assets in the Company's consolidated balance sheets and amortized to interest expense over the term of the credit facility.
(1)
On March 8, 2017, the loan and credit facility agreements were terminated and the Company repaid the total outstanding amounts with the proceeds from its public offering of $375 million of senior notes.
(2)
On March 8, 2017, the Company completed a public debt offering issuing $375 million of senior notes. The notes are unsecured senior obligations of the Company, with a 4.40% annual coupon payable on March 15 and September 15 of each year commencing September 15, 2017. These notes mature on March 15, 2027. The Company used the proceeds from the notes to pay off amounts outstanding under the existing loan and credit facilities and for general corporate purposes. The Company incurred debt issuance costs of approximately $3.4 million, inclusive of underwriters' fees. The notes were issued at a slight discount of 99.847% of par, resulting in the effective annualized interest rate, including debt issuance costs, of approximately 4.45%.
(3)
On March 29, 2017, the Company entered into an unsecured credit agreement that provides for revolving loans of up to $50 million and matures on March 29, 2022. The interest rates on borrowings under the credit facility are based on the Company's debt to total capital ratio and range from LIBOR plus 112.5 basis points when the ratio is under 15% to LIBOR plus 162.5 basis points when the ratio is greater than or equal to 25%. Commitment fees for the undrawn portions of the credit facility range from 12.5 basis points when the ratio is under 15% to 22.5 basis points when the ratio is greater than or equal to 25%. The debt to total capital ratio is expressed as a percentage of (a) consolidated debt to (b) consolidated shareholders' equity plus consolidated debt. The Company's debt to total capital ratio was 17.4% at September 30, 2017, resulting in a 15 basis point commitment fee on the $50 million undrawn portion of the credit facility. As of October 26, 2017, there have been no borrowings under this facility.
(4)
The unamortized discount and debt issuance costs of approximately $3.8 million are associated with the publicly traded $375 million senior unsecured notes. These are amortized to interest expense over the life of the notes, and the unamortized balance is presented in the Company's consolidated balance sheets as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of the debt. The unamortized debt issuance cost of approximately $0.2 million associated with the $50 million five-year unsecured revolving credit facility maturing on March 29, 2022 is included in other assets in the Company's consolidated balance sheets and amortized to interest expense over the term of the credit facility.
12. Contingencies


The Company is, from time to time, named as a defendant in various lawsuits or regulatory actions incidental to its insurance business. The majority of lawsuits brought against the Company relate to insurance claims that arise in the normal course of business and are reserved for through the reserving process. For a discussion of the Company’s reserving methods, see the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.2020.


In March 2006, the California DOI issued an Amended Notice of Non-Compliance to a Notice of Non-Compliance originally issued in February 2004 (as amended, “2004 NNC”) alleging that the Company charged rates in violation of the California Insurance Code, willfully permitted its agents to charge broker fees in violation of California law, and willfully misrepresented the actual price insurance consumers could expect to pay for insurance by the amount of a fee charged by the consumer's insurance broker. The California DOI sought to impose a fine for each policy on which the Company allegedly permitted an agent to charge a broker fee, to impose a penalty for each policy on which the Company allegedly used a misleading advertisement, and to suspend certificates of authority for a period of one year. In January 2012, the administrative law judge bifurcated the 2004 NNC between (a) the California DOI’s order to show cause (the “OSC”), in which the California DOI asserts the false advertising allegations and accusation, and (b) the California DOI’s notice of noncompliance (the “NNC”), in which the California DOI asserts the

unlawful rate allegations. In February 2012, the administrative law judge (“ALJ”) submitted a proposed decision dismissing the NNC, but the Commissioner rejected the ALJ’s proposed decision. The Company challenged the rejection in Los Angeles Superior Court in April 2012, and the Commissioner responded with a demurrer. Following a hearing, the Superior Court sustained the Commissioner’s demurrer, based on the Company’s failure to exhaust its administrative remedies, and the Company appealed. The Court of Appeal affirmed the Superior Court's ruling that the Company was required to exhaust its administrative remedies, but expressly preserved for later appeal the legal basis for the ALJ’s dismissal: violation of the Company’s due process rights. Following an evidentiary hearing in April 2013, post-hearing briefs, and an unsuccessful mediation, the ALJ closed the evidentiary record on April 30, 2014. Although a proposed decision was to be submitted to the Commissioner on or before June 30, 2014, after which the Commissioner would have 100 days to accept, reject or modify the proposed decision, the proposed decision was not submitted until December 8, 2014. On January 7, 2015, the Commissioner adopted the ALJ’s proposed decision, which became the Commissioner’s adopted order (the "Order"). The decision and Order found that from the period July 1, 1996, through 2006, the Company’s "brokers" were actually operating as "de facto agents" and that the charging of "broker fees" by these producers constituted the charging of "premium" in excess of the Company's approved rates, and assessed a civil penalty in the amount of $27.6 million against the Company. On February 9, 2015, the Company filed a Writ of Administrative Mandamus and Complaint for Declaratory Relief (the “Writ”) in the Orange County Superior Court seeking, among other things, to require the Commissioner to vacate the Order, to stay the Order while the Superior Court action is pending, and to judicially declare as invalid the Commissioner’s interpretation of certain provisions of the California Insurance Code. Subsequent to the filing of the Writ, a consumer group petitioned and was granted the right to intervene in the Superior Court action. The Court did not order a stay, and the $27.6 million assessed penalty was paid in March 2015. The Company filed an amended Writ on September 11, 2015, adding an explicit request for a refund of the penalty, with interest.

On August 12, 2016, the Superior Court issued its ruling on the Writ, for the most part granting the relief sought by the Company. The Superior Court found that the Commissioner and the California DOI did commit due process violations, but declined to dismiss the case on those grounds. The Superior Court also agreed with the Company that the broker fees at issue were not premium, and that the penalties imposed by the Commissioner were improper, and therefore vacated the Order imposing the penalty. The Superior Court entered final judgment on November 17, 2016, issuing a writ requiring the Commissioner to refund the entire penalty amount within 120 days, plus prejudgment interest at the statutory rate of 7%. On January 12, 2017, the California DOI filed a notice of appeal of the Superior Court's judgment entered on November 17, 2016. While the appeal is still pending, the California DOI returned the entire penalty amount plus accrued interest, a total of $30.9 million, to the Company in June 2017 in order to avoid accruing further interest. Because the matter has been appealed, the Company has not yet recognized the $30.9 million as a gain in the consolidated statements of operations; instead, the Company recorded the $30.9 million plus interest earned, a total of approximately $31.0 million at September 30, 2017, in other liabilities in the consolidated balance sheets. The Company had filed a motion to dismiss the false advertising portion of the case based on the Superior Court's findings, but the ALJ denied that motion after the appeal was filed. The ALJ did, however, grant the Company's alternative request to stay further proceedings pending the final determination of the appeal. The Company has accrued a liability for the estimated cost to continue to defend itself in the false advertising OSC. Based upon its understanding of the facts and the California Insurance Code, the Company does not expect that the ultimate resolution of the false advertising OSC will be material to its financial position.

The Company establishes reserves for non-insurance claims related lawsuits, regulatory actions, and other contingencies when the Company believes a loss is probable and is able to estimate its potential exposure. For loss contingencies believed to
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be reasonably possible, the Company also discloses the nature of the loss contingency and an estimate of the possible loss, range of loss, or a statement that such an estimate cannot be made. While actual losses may differ from the amounts recorded and the ultimate outcome of the Company's pending actions is generally not yet determinable, the Company does not believe that the ultimate resolution of currently pending legal or regulatory proceedings, either individually or in the aggregate, will have a material adverse effect on its financial condition or cash flows.


In all cases, the Company vigorously defends itself unless a reasonable settlement appears appropriate. For a discussion of legal matters, see the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.2020.


13. Segment Information


The Company is primarily engaged in writing personal automobile insurance and provides related property and casualty insurance products to its customers through 14 subsidiaries in 11 states, principally in California.
The Company has one1 reportable business segment - the Property and Casualty business segment.
The Company’s Chief Operating Decision Maker evaluates operating results based on pre-tax underwriting results which is calculated as net premiums earned less (a) losses and loss adjustment expenses and (b) underwriting expenses (policy acquisition costs and other operating expenses).

Expenses are allocated based on certain assumptions that are primarily related to premiums and losses. The Company’s net investment income, net realized investment gains or losses, other income, and interest expense are excluded in evaluating pretax underwriting profit. The Company does not allocate its assets, including investments, or income taxes in evaluating pre-tax underwriting profit.
Property and Casualty Lines
The Property and Casualty business segment offers several insurance products to the Company’s individual customers and small business customers. These insurance products are: private passenger automobile which is the Company’s primary business, and related insurance products such as homeowners, commercial automobile and commercial property. These related insurance products are primarily sold to the Company’s individual customers and small business customers, which increases retention of the Company’s private passenger automobile client base. The insurance products comprising the Property and Casualty business segment are sold through the same distribution channels, mainly through independent and 100% owned insurance agents, and go through a similar underwriting process.
Other Lines
The Other business segment represents net premiums written and earned from an operating segment that does not meet the quantitative thresholds required to be considered a reportable segment. This operating segment offers automobile mechanical protection warranties which are primarily sold through automobile dealerships and credit unions.




















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The following tables present the Company's operating results by reportable segment:
Three Months Ended June 30,
20212020
 Property & CasualtyOtherTotalProperty & CasualtyOtherTotal
(Amounts in millions)
Net premiums earned$919.5 $7.3 $926.8 $804.8 $7.1 $811.9 
Less:
Losses and loss adjustment expenses653.6 3.6 657.2 492.1 3.2 495.3 
Underwriting expenses218.1 3.9 222.0 217.4 3.4 220.8 
Underwriting gain (loss)47.8 (0.2)47.6 95.3 0.5 95.8 
Investment income31.0 34.2 
Net realized investment gains58.8 158.4 
Other income2.2 1.4 
Interest expense(4.2)(4.3)
Pre-tax income$135.4 $285.5 
Net income$109.2 $228.2 
 Three Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
 Property & Casualty Other Total Property & Casualty Other Total
            
 (Amounts in millions)
Net premiums earned$792.7
 $8.5
 $801.2
 $780.6
 $10.3
 $790.9
Less:           
Losses and loss adjustment expenses591.1
 4.2
 595.3
 570.8
 5.5
 576.3
Underwriting expenses196.7
 3.9
 200.6
 194.8
 4.5
 199.3
Underwriting gain4.9
 0.4
 5.3
 15.0
 0.3
 15.3
Investment income    31.0
     30.3
Net realized investment gains (losses)
    20.7
     (15.5)
Other income    5.4
     2.4
Interest expense    (4.2)     (0.9)
Pre-tax income    $58.2
     $31.6
Net income    $46.5
     $26.9

Six Months Ended June 30,
20212020
 Property & CasualtyOtherTotalProperty & CasualtyOtherTotal
(Amounts in millions)
Net premiums earned$1,828.3 $14.4 $1,842.7 $1,720.1 $14.4 $1,734.5 
Less:
Losses and loss adjustment expenses1,276.5 7.1 1,283.6 1,140.3 6.7 1,147.0 
Underwriting expenses445.1 6.7 451.8 446.8 7.1 453.9 
Underwriting gain106.7 0.6 107.3 133.0 0.6 133.6 
Investment income63.2 68.7 
Net realized investment gains (losses)100.5 (92.9)
Other income5.4 3.9 
Interest expense(8.6)(8.5)
Pre-tax income$267.8 $104.8 
Net income$216.2 $89.0 


















23

 Nine Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
 Property & Casualty Other Total Property & Casualty Other Total
            
 (Amounts in millions)
Net premiums earned$2,362.4
 $26.2
 $2,388.6
 $2,305.0
 $32.3
 $2,337.3
Less:           
Losses and loss adjustment expenses1,777.1
 13.5
 1,790.6
 1,748.2
 17.3
 1,765.5
Underwriting expenses587.7
 11.9
 599.6
 586.1
 13.6
 599.7
Underwriting (loss) gain(2.4) 0.8
 (1.6) (29.3) 1.4
 (27.9)
Investment income    94.1
     91.4
Net realized investment gains    66.3
     55.0
Other income    9.7
     6.4
Interest expense    (10.9)     (2.9)
Pre-tax income    $157.6
     $122.0
Net income    $125.1
     $99.1
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The following tables present the Company’s net premiums earned and direct premiums written by reportable segment and line of insurance business:
Three Months Ended June 30,
 20212020
 Property & CasualtyOtherTotalProperty & CasualtyOtherTotal
(Amounts in millions)
Private passenger automobile$650.8 $$650.8 $579.7 $$579.7 
Homeowners169.4 169.4 146.5 146.5 
Commercial automobile64.6 64.6 51.1 51.1 
Other34.7 7.3 42.0 27.5 7.1 34.6 
Net premiums earned$919.5 $7.3 $926.8 $804.8 $7.1 $811.9 
Private passenger automobile$646.0 $$646.0 $555.0 $$555.0 
Homeowners207.9 207.9 180.7 180.7 
Commercial automobile66.2 66.2 55.8 55.8 
Other43.3 9.5 52.8 31.5 5.8 37.3 
Direct premiums written$963.4 $9.5 $972.9 $823.0 $5.8 $828.8 

Six Months Ended June 30,
 20212020
 Property & CasualtyOtherTotalProperty & CasualtyOtherTotal
(Amounts in millions)
Private passenger automobile$1,304.6 $$1,304.6 $1,273.6 $$1,273.6 
Homeowners330.2 330.2 286.0 286.0 
Commercial automobile127.2 127.2 106.3 106.3 
Other66.3 14.4 80.7 54.2 14.4 68.6 
Net premiums earned$1,828.3 $14.4 $1,842.7 $1,720.1 $14.4 $1,734.5 
Private passenger automobile$1,312.5 $$1,312.5 $1,265.4 $$1,265.4 
Homeowners378.1 378.1 328.2 328.2 
Commercial automobile135.1 135.1 117.5 117.5 
Other84.3 16.3 100.6 61.7 13.9 75.6 
Direct premiums written$1,910.0 $16.3 $1,926.3 $1,772.8 $13.9 $1,786.7 

24
 Three Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
 Property & Casualty Other Total Property & Casualty Other Total
            
 (Amounts in millions)
Private passenger automobile$619.8
 $
 $619.8
 $614.0
 $
 $614.0
Homeowners108.3
 
 108.3
 105.5
 
 105.5
Commercial automobile43.6
 
 43.6
 41.2
 
 41.2
Other21.0
 8.5
 29.5
 19.9
 10.3
 30.2
Net premiums earned$792.7
 $8.5
 $801.2
 $780.6
 $10.3
 $790.9
            
Private passenger automobile$633.7
 $
 $633.7
 $630.1
 $
 $630.1
Homeowners125.8
 
 125.8
 116.0
 
 116.0
Commercial automobile45.6
 
 45.6
 41.9
 
 41.9
Other22.9
 7.1
 30.0
 22.4
 6.6
 29.0
Direct premiums written$828.0
 $7.1
 $835.1
 $810.4
 $6.6
 $817.0



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 Nine Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
 Property & Casualty Other Total Property & Casualty Other Total
            
 (Amounts in millions)
Private passenger automobile$1,850.3
 $
 $1,850.3
 $1,820.1
 $
 $1,820.1
Homeowners322.3
 
 322.3
 307.0
 
 307.0
Commercial automobile127.3
 
 127.3
 119.8
 
 119.8
Other62.5
 26.2
 88.7
 58.1
 32.3
 90.4
Net premiums earned$2,362.4
 $26.2
 $2,388.6
 $2,305.0
 $32.3
 $2,337.3
            
Private passenger automobile$1,872.8
 $
 $1,872.8
 $1,857.3
 $
 $1,857.3
Homeowners352.3
 
 352.3
 331.4
 
 331.4
Commercial automobile133.7
 
 133.7
 125.2
 
 125.2
Other69.9
 21.3
 91.2
 66.3
 20.9
 87.2
Direct premiums written$2,428.7
 $21.3
 $2,450.0
 $2,380.2
 $20.9
 $2,401.1


14. Subsequent Event

In October 2017, a series of destructive wildfires burned across several counties in Northern California. Recent estimates put the total number of structures destroyed at over 8,000. Based on claims reported to date and expected to be reported, the Company estimates that its share of the total structures destroyed will be fewer than 100. The Company estimates a total gross loss in the range of $60 million to $100 million and a net loss, after the benefit of reinsurance, of $10 million, plus any reinstatement premiums required under the terms of the Company's catastrophe reinsurance treaty. Due to the recent occurrence and magnitude of this event, the total losses from these wildfires are difficult to estimate, and these figures may change in the future.
The Company benefited significantly from its newly expanded catastrophe reinsurance treaty that became effective July 1, 2017. Under the reinsurance treaty, covered catastrophe losses are reinsured 100% up to $190 million above the Company's $10 million retention. Losses above $200 million are shared pro-rata with 5% coverage by the reinsurers and 95% retention by the Company, up to a total of $15 million in coverage provided by the reinsurers. The reinsurance treaty is subject to reinstatement premiums based on the amount of reinsurance benefits paid to the Company, up to the maximum reinstatement premium of $19 million if the full amount of benefit is used.


Item 2.Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
Forward-Looking Statements


The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a “safe harbor” for certain forward-looking statements. Certain statements contained in this report are forward-looking statements based on the Company’s current expectations and beliefs concerning future developments and their potential effects on the Company. There can be no assurance that future developments affecting the Company will be those anticipated by the Company. Actual results may differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements involve significant risks and uncertainties (some of which are beyond the control of the Company) and are subject to change based upon various factors, including but not limited to the following risks and uncertainties: changes in the demand for the Company’s insurance products, inflation and general economic conditions, including general market risks associated with the Company’s investment portfolio; the accuracy and adequacy of the Company’s pricing methodologies; catastrophes in the markets served by the Company; uncertainties related to estimates, assumptions and projections generally; the possibility that actual loss experience may vary adversely from the actuarial estimates made to determine the Company’s loss reserves in general; the Company’s ability to obtain and the timing of the approval of premium rate changes for insurance policies issued in the states where the Companyit operates; legislation adverse to the automobile insurance industry or business generally that may be enacted in the states where the Company operates; the Company’s success in managing its business in non-California states; the presence of competitors with greater financial resources and the impact of competitive pricing and marketing efforts; the Company's ability of the Company to successfully manage its claims organization outside of California; the Company's ability to successfully allocate the resources used in the states with reduced or exited operations to its operations in other states; changes in driving patterns and loss trends; acts of war and terrorist activities; pandemics, epidemics, widespread health emergencies, or outbreaks of infectious diseases; court decisions and trends in litigation and health care and auto repair costs and marketing efforts;costs; and legal, cybersecurity, regulatory and litigation risks. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements, whether as the result of new information, future events or otherwise. For a more detailed discussion of some of the foregoing risks and uncertainties, see the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 9, 2017.16, 2021.
OVERVIEW
A. General


The operating results of property and casualty insurance companies are subject to significant quarter-to-quarter and year-to-year fluctuations due to the effect of competition on pricing, the frequency and severity of losses, the effect of weather and natural disasters on losses, general economic conditions, the general regulatory environment in states in which an insurer operates, state regulation of insurance including premium rates, changes in fair value of investments, and other factors such as changes in tax laws. The property and casualty insurance industry has been highly cyclical, with periods of high premium rates and shortages of underwriting capacity followed by periods of severe price competition and excess capacity. These cycles can have a significant impact on the Company’s ability to grow and retain business.

This section discusses some of the relevant factors that management considers in evaluating the Company’s performance, prospects, and risks. It is not all-inclusive and is meant to be read in conjunction with the entirety of management’s discussion and analysis, the Company’s consolidated financial statements and notes thereto, and all other items contained within this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.


Note on COVID-19
In March 2020, the outbreak of COVID-19 was recognized as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (the "WHO"). The pandemic has had a notable impact on general economic conditions, including, but not limited to, the temporary closures of many businesses, “shelter in place” and other governmental orders, and reduced consumer spending. The Company has been following guidelines or orders issued by the Centers for Disease Control, the WHO and state and local governments. The Company has also taken a number of precautionary steps to safeguard its business and employees from COVID-19, including activating its Business Continuity Plan. Most of the Company's employees have been working remotely, with only certain operationally critical employees working on site at various locations. The Company is monitoring and assessing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic daily, including recommendations and orders issued by federal, state and local governments. The Company has recently extended its "work-from-home" policy for most of its employees to January 2022, and may further extend the policy, if necessary, based on the latest information on the pandemic's developments.

The Company’s automobile line of insurance business began experiencing a significant decrease in loss frequency in
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March of 2020, and it remained lower than historical levels through the first half of 2021, although it began to increase as more drivers returned to the road following the gradual reopening of businesses in California and other states. The reduction in automobile loss frequency was primarily due to reduced driving during the pandemic. Due to the uncertainty regarding COVID-19, it is unclear how long automobile loss frequency will remain below historical levels. After bottoming out in the second quarter of 2020, loss frequency steadily increased through the end of 2020, and after a brief pause in the first quarter of 2021, it re-accelerated in the second quarter of 2021. The severity of accidents, for both bodily injury and the cost to repair vehicles, has increased following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic primarily due to a higher percentage of high-speed serious accidents on less congested roads and freeways. The cost to repair vehicles may remain high due to supply chain and labor force issues. The COVID-19 pandemic also created more uncertainty, and the total effect on losses occurring during the COVID-19 era will not be known for several years. The Company expects more late reported claims and a prolonged settlement period, particularly for bodily injury claims. Many courts have been closed, and claimants may have been reluctant to seek medical treatments due to the pandemic. The recent increases in loss frequency combined with sustained high loss severity have negatively impacted the Company's results of operations, when compared to other quarters during the COVID-19 pandemic era. If loss frequency further increases to the pre-pandemic levels and/or loss severity remains high in the near future, operating results may significantly deteriorate and the Company may consider submitting its private passenger automobile rate filings requesting rate increases. Following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, the company withdrew such rate filings pending before the pandemic.

Many businesses have been required by state and local governments to cease or substantially reduce operations, and have suffered severe financial losses as a result. Many of these businesses have submitted claims to their insurers under the business interruption coverage of their commercial property policies, resulting in coverage disputes in many states. While the Company does insure a modest number of businesses with this business interruption coverage, these pandemic-related losses are not covered under the Company's policy terms and conditions. The Company’s business interruption, or “business income” coverage, requires a “direct physical loss” to the property that results in suspension of operations, such as a fire or water loss. The coverage is not triggered under the present circumstances. Most of the Company’s policies also contain an exclusion for losses caused directly or indirectly by “virus or bacteria.” This exclusion was adopted by many insurers after the SARS outbreak of 2003-2004, upon recognition that such a pandemic could result in losses far exceeding the capacity of individual insurers and the private insurance market as a whole. The Company does not believe it has any material exposure to business interruption claims.

Due to disruptions in the equity and fixed maturity securities markets following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Company's investment portfolio substantially declined in value during the quarter ended March 31, 2020; however, its investment portfolio has recovered in value during the subsequent quarters of 2020 and in 2021. In March 2020, the Federal Open Market Committee (“FOMC”) unveiled a set of aggressive measures to cushion the economic impact of the global COVID-19 crisis, including, among others, cutting the federal funds rate by 100 basis points to a range of 0.00% to 0.25% and establishing a series of emergency credit facilities in an effort to support the flow of credit in the economy, easing liquidity pressure and calming market turmoil. While volatility in the financial markets remains elevated, overall market liquidity concerns have eased following the actions taken by the FOMC. The Company believes that it will continue to have sufficient liquidity to support its business operations during the COVID-19 crisis and beyond without the forced sale of investments, based on its existing cash and short-term investments, future cash flows from operations, and $75 million of undrawn credit in its revolving credit facility.

On March 27, 2020, the President of the United States signed the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security ("CARES") Act, a substantial tax-and-spending package intended to provide economic stimulus to address the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The CARES Act includes, among other items, cash payments to individuals as well as emergency grants and forgivable loans to small businesses, if they meet certain criteria. On March 11, 2021, the President of the United States signed the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill, to provide additional relief to address the continued impact of COVID-19 on the economy, public health, state and local governments, individuals, and businesses. To the extent the Company's existing or potential policyholders and business partners are aided by such relief programs, the negative impact of the pandemic on its results of operations may be mitigated.

The Company will continue to monitor the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the effects of the CARES Act, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 and any additional legislative relief. The extent of the impact of the pandemic on the Company's business and financial results will depend largely on future developments, including the duration of the pandemic, its impact on capital and financial markets and the related impact on consumer confidence and spending, the success of a broad vaccine rollout in the U. S. and around the world, and the impact of actions taken in response to new variants of COVID-19, most of which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted. As the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, additional impacts may arise.

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B. Business

The Company is primarily engaged in writing personal automobile insurance through 14 insurance subsidiaries (“Insurance Companies”) in 11 states, principally California. The Company also writes homeowners, commercial automobile, commercial property, mechanical protection, and umbrella insurance. The Company's insurance policies are mostly sold through independent agents who receive a commission for selling policies. The Company believes that it has thorough underwriting and claims handling processes that, together with its agent relationships, provide the Company with competitive advantages.





The following tables present direct premiums written, by state and line of insurance business, for the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016:2020:


Six Months Ended June 30, 2021
(Dollars in thousands)
Private
Passenger  Automobile
HomeownersCommercial
Automobile
Other Lines (2)
Total
California$1,156,314 $306,989 $91,965 $91,687 $1,646,955 85.5 %
Other states (1)
156,213 71,132 43,107 8,859 279,311 14.5 %
Total$1,312,527 $378,121 $135,072 $100,546 $1,926,266 100.0 %
68.2 %19.6 %7.0 %5.2 %100.0 %
 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2017
 (Dollars in thousands)
            
 
Private
Passenger  Automobile
 Homeowners 
Commercial
Automobile
 Other Lines Total  
California$1,592,750
 $301,810
 $75,194
 $82,867
 $2,052,621
 83.8%
Florida (1)
110,134
 8
 13,736
 655
 124,533
 5.1%
Other states (2)
169,914
 50,526
 44,753
 7,695
 272,888
 11.1%
Total$1,872,798
 $352,344
 $133,683
 $91,217
 $2,450,042
 100.0%
 76.4% 14.4% 5.5% 3.7% 100.0%  


 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2016
 (Dollars in thousands)
            
 
Private
Passenger  Automobile
 Homeowners 
Commercial
Automobile
 Other Lines Total  
California$1,551,442
 $279,295
 $64,359
 $78,456
 $1,973,552
 82.2%
Florida (1)
121,595
 8
 20,129
 1,018
 142,750
 5.9%
Other states (2)
184,276
 52,103
 40,756
 7,626
 284,761
 11.9%
Total$1,857,313
 $331,406
 $125,244
 $87,100
 $2,401,063
 100.0%
 77.4% 13.8% 5.2% 3.6% 100.0%  
Six Months Ended June 30, 2020
(Dollars in thousands)
Private
Passenger  Automobile
HomeownersCommercial
Automobile
Other LinesTotal
California (3)
$1,115,535 $283,606 $77,631 $68,206 $1,544,978 86.5 %
Other states (1) (4)
149,868 44,554 39,914 7,377 241,713 13.5 %
Total$1,265,403 $328,160 $117,545 $75,583 $1,786,691 100.0 %
70.8 %18.4 %6.6 %4.2 %100.0 %
______________
(1)
The Company is writing and expects to continue writing nominal premiums in the Florida homeowners market.
(2)
No individual state accounted for more than 4% of total direct premiums written.

(1) No individual state accounted for more than 5% of total direct premiums written.
(2) No individual line of insurance business accounted for more than 5% of total direct premiums written.
(3) California private passenger automobile and commercial automobile direct premiums written were reduced by approximately $92 million and $4 million, respectively, due to premium refunds and credits under the "Mercury Giveback" program associated with reduced driving during the COVID-19 pandemic.
(4) Other states private passenger automobile and commercial automobile direct premiums written were reduced by approximately $8 million and $1 million, respectively, due to premium refunds and credits, as described above.

C. Regulatory and Legal Matters


The Department of Insurance (“DOI”) in each state in which the Company operates is responsible for conducting periodic financial, market conduct, and rating and underwriting examinations of the Insurance Companies in their states. Market conduct examinations typically review compliance with insurance statutes and regulations with respect to rating, underwriting, claims handling, billing, and other practices.


The following table presents a summary of recent and upcoming examinations:

StateExam TypeExam Period CoveredStatus
StateCAExam TypeMarket ConductPeriod Under Review2020-2021StatusInitial inquiries began in June 2021.
GACAFinancialPremium Tax20112015 to 20132018Received final report.Desk audit was completed in the first quarter of 2021 with no additional taxes due.
CATXMarket Conduct ClaimsPremium and Maintenance Tax20152016 to 2019Field work is expected to beginDesk audit was completed in the 4thfourth quarter of 20172020 with no additional taxes due.
CARating and Underwriting2014Field work is completed. Awaiting draft report.
VAMarket Conduct2014 to 2015Received draftFinal report and awaiting final report.of examination was adopted by the DOI on November 6, 2019.

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During the course of and at the conclusion of thesethe examinations, the examining DOI generally reports findings to the Company. NoneOn October 30, 2020, the Company received notice from the California DOI that the market conduct examination report for the 2014 examination period mentioned above was being reviewed for potential further action in connection with some of the findings reportedin the report. Subsequently, the California DOI gave the Company notice of its intent to proceed with an enforcement action for the alleged violations in the report. The California DOI has advised that the Company will have the opportunity to resolve the alleged violations before a Notice of Noncompliance is formally filed.

On April 13, 2020, the California Insurance Commissioner issued Bulletin 2020-3 ordering insurers to make an initial premium adjustment within 120 days from the date are expectedof the Bulletin 2020-3 to beadversely impacted California policyholders for the months of March and April 2020. The Commissioner granted insurers flexibility in determining how to quickly and fairly process the premium refunds. On May 15, 2020, the California Insurance Commissioner issued Bulletin 2020-4 extending the directives in Bulletin 2020-3 through May 31, 2020. Bulletin 2020-8, originally issued on June 25, 2020 and amended on December 3, 2020, extended the previous directives of Bulletin 2020-3 and Bulletin 2020-4 through June 30, 2020, as well as any months subsequent to June 2020 because the COVID-19 pandemic continued to result in projected loss exposures remaining overstated or misclassified. On March 11, 2021, the California Insurance Commissioner issued Bulletin 2021-03 directing California insurance companies to do more to return additional premium relief commensurate with continuing reductions in the exposure to loss for particular lines of insurance and to communicate with their policyholders about how they will return premiums as well as options available to reduce their ongoing premiums. The Company believes that the amounts returned to-date, including the mileage reductions on individual policies, have provided appropriate and material relief to its policyholders. The total amount of premiums returned to the Company's policyholders through refunds or credits is approximately $128 million, which reduced its net premiums earned for 2020. The Company has also worked with its agents and policyholders to reclassify exposures on an individual policy basis, including reducing mileage on approximately 280,000 vehicles since the pandemic began. The mileage reductions have significantly reduced premiums on those individual policies in a manner consistent with the Company’s financial position.filed and approved rates. Additionally, the Company withdrew its private passenger automobile rate filings requesting rate increases that were pending before the pandemic.

In March 2017,2021, the California DOI approved a 6.9% rate increase on California Automobile Insurance Company's private passenger automobile line of insurance business, which represented approximately 14% of the Company's total net premiums earned for the nine months ended September 30, 2017. This rate increase became effective in May 2017. In April 2017, the California DOI approved a 6.9%6.99% rate increase on the California homeowners line of insurance business, which represented approximately 12%15% of the Company's total net premiums earned for the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 2017. This2021. The Company implemented this rate increase became effective in August 2017.June 2021.

The Company primarily sells its California private passenger automobile insurance business through two of its insurance subsidiaries, Mercury Insurance Company (“MIC”) and California Automobile Insurance Company (“CAIC”). MIC accepts only “Good Drivers” (as defined in the California Insurance Code) and provides lower rates, but its policy has narrower coverages than the CAIC policy. At the request of the California DOI, the Company intends to broaden the coverages in MIC, making the coverages the same as in CAIC. Once the coverages are standardized across these two insurance subsidiaries, the Company will automatically move qualified Good Drivers from CAIC to MIC. Good Drivers accounted for approximately 87% of the Company's California voluntary private passenger automobile policies-in-force at December 31, 2020, while higher risk categories accounted for approximately 13%. The transfer of qualified Good Drivers from CAIC to MIC, which is planned for implementation in the fourth quarter of 2021, is expected to reduce the Company's annual California private passenger automobile insurance premiums earned by approximately $25 million over a 24-month period beginning in the fourth quarter of 2021. The increase in losses resulting from broadening the coverages in MIC is not estimable, but is not expected to be material.

In July 2019, the governor of California signed a bill that created a $21 billion fund (the "California Wildfire Fund") to help then bankrupt Pacific Gas and Electric Company ("PG&E") and the state's other investor-owned utility companies cover liabilities arising from future wildfires caused by their equipment. The bill requires investor-owned utility companies to fund half of the California Wildfire Fund. The other half is to be funded by surcharges paid by ratepayers across the state. On July 1, 2020, PG&E made an announcement that it emerged out of bankruptcy and made an initial deposit of approximately $5 billion to the California Wildfire Fund. It is expected that the Company and other insurers will be reimbursed for some portion of the claims paid for its policyholders if it is determined that a wildfire is caused by equipment failure. The announcement also confirmed that PG&E funded the Subrogation Trust Fund with $11 billion, which was set up to reimburse insurance companies and other entities that paid claims by individuals and businesses related to wildfires that occurred in the recent past years prior to July 1, 2020. The Company received approximately $23 million, net of fees, in 2020 from the Subrogation Trust Fund. However, the subrogation recovery recognized was for losses and loss adjustment expenses previously ceded to the Company’s reinsurers, and therefore the recovery did not reduce losses and loss adjustment expenses net of reinsurance. The benefit to the Company, net of reinsurance and before taxes, was approximately $3 million, representing a reduction to reinstatement premiums previously recognized.

The Company is, from time to time, named as a defendant in various lawsuits or regulatory actions incidental to its insurance business. The majority of lawsuits brought against the Company relate to insurance claims that arise in the normal
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course of

business and are reserved for through the reserving process. For a discussion of the Company’s reserving methods, see the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.2020.

The Company establishes reserves for non-insurance claims related lawsuits, regulatory actions, and other contingencies when the Company believes a loss is probable and is able to estimate its potential exposure. For loss contingencies believed to be reasonably possible, the Company also discloses the nature of the loss contingency and an estimate of the possible loss, range of loss, or a statement that such an estimate cannot be made. While actual losses may differ from the amounts recorded and the ultimate outcome of the Company's pending actions is generally not yet determinable, the Company does not believe that the ultimate resolution of currently pending legal or regulatory proceedings, either individually or in the aggregate, will have a material adverse effect on its financial condition or cash flows.

In all cases, the Company vigorously defends itself unless a reasonable settlement appears appropriate. For a discussion of legal matters, see the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016,2020, and Note 12. Contingencies of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements of this Quarterly Report.

D. Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates


Loss and Loss Adjustment Expense Reserves ("Loss Reserves")


Preparation of the Company’s consolidated financial statements requires management’s judgment and estimates. The most significant is the estimate of loss reserves. Estimating loss reserves is a difficult process as many factors can ultimately affect the final settlement of a claim and, therefore, the loss reserve that is required. A key assumption in estimating loss reserves is the degree to which the historical data used to analyze reserves will be predictive of ultimate claim costs on incurred claims. Changes in the regulatory and legal environments, results of litigation, medical costs, the cost of repair materials, and labor rates, among other factors, can impact this assumption. In addition, time can be a critical part of reserving determinations since the longer the span between the incidence of a loss and the payment or settlement of a claim, the more variable the ultimate settlement amount could be. Accordingly, short-tail claims, such as property damage claims, tend to be more reasonably predictable than long-tail liability claims.


The Company calculates a loss reserve point estimate rather than a range. There is inherent uncertainty with estimates and this is particularly true with loss reserve estimates. This uncertainty comes from many factors which may include changes in claims reporting and settlement patterns, changes in the regulatory and legal environments, uncertainty over inflation rates, and uncertainty for unknown items. The Company does not make specific provisions for these uncertainties, rather it considers them in establishing its loss reserve by reviewing historical patterns and trends and projecting these out to current loss reserves. The underlying factors and assumptions that serve as the basis for preparing the loss reserve estimate include paid and incurred loss development factors, expected average costs per claim, inflation trends, expected loss ratios, industry data, and other relevant information.


The Company also engages independent actuarial consultants to review the Company’s loss reserves and to provide the annual actuarial opinions under statutory accounting principles as required by state regulation. The Company analyzes loss reserves quarterly primarily using the incurred loss, paid loss, average severity coupled with the claim count development methods, and the generalized linear model ("GLM") described below. When deciding among methods to use, the Company evaluates the credibility of each method based on the maturity of the data available and the claims settlement practices for each particular line of insurance business or coverage within a line of insurance business. The Company may also evaluate qualitative factors such as known changes in laws or legal rulings that could affect claims handling or other external environmental factors or internal factors that could affect the settlement of claims. When establishing the loss reserve, the Company will generally analyze the results from all of the methods used rather than relying on a single method. While these methods are designed to determine the ultimate losses on claims under the Company’s policies, there is inherent uncertainty in all actuarial models since they use historical data to project outcomes. The Company believes that the techniques it uses provide a reasonable basis in estimating loss reserves.


The incurred loss method analyzes historical incurred case loss (case reserves plus paid losses) development to estimate ultimate losses. The Company applies development factors against current case incurred losses by accident period to calculate ultimate expected losses. The Company believes that the incurred loss method provides a reasonable basis for evaluating ultimate losses, particularly in the Company’s larger, more established lines of insurance business which have a long operating history.
The paid loss method analyzes historical payment patterns to estimate the amount of losses yet to be paid.
29

The average severity method analyzes historical loss payments and/or incurred losses divided by closed claims and/or total claims to calculate an estimated average cost per claim. From this, the expected ultimate average cost per claim can

be estimated. The average severity method coupled with the claim count development method provide meaningful information regarding inflation and frequency trends that the Company believes is useful in establishing loss reserves. The claim count development method analyzes historical claim count development to estimate future incurred claim count development for current claims. The Company applies these development factors against current claim counts by accident period to calculate ultimate expected claim counts.
The GLM determines an average severity for each percentile of claims that have been closed as a percentage of estimated ultimate claims. The average severities are applied to open claims to estimate the amount of losses yet to be paid. The GLM utilizes operational time, determined as a percentile of claims closed rather than a finite calendar period, which neutralizes the effect of changes in the timing of claims handling.


The Company analyzes catastrophe losses separately from non-catastrophe losses. For catastrophe losses, the Company generally determines claim counts based on claims reported and development expectations from previous catastrophes and applies an average expected loss per claim based on loss reserves established by adjusters and average losses on previous similar catastrophes. For catastrophe losses on individual properties that are expected to be total losses, the Company typically establishes reserves at the policy limits.
At SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, the Company recorded its point estimate of approximately $1.37$2.09 billion and $1.29$1.99 billion ($2.04 billion and $1.94 billion, net of reinsurance), respectively, in loss reserves, which included approximately $574.2$954.7 million and $534.8$885.5 million ($933.6 million and $864.5 million, net of reinsurance), respectively, of incurred but not reported loss reserves (“IBNR”). IBNR includes estimates, based upon past experience, of ultimate developed costs, which may differ from case estimates, unreported claims that occurred on or prior to SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, and estimated future payments for reopened claims. Management believes that the liability for loss reserves is adequate to cover the ultimate net cost of losses and loss adjustment expenses incurred to date; however, since the provisions are necessarily based upon estimates, the ultimate liability may be more or less than such provisions.
The Company evaluates its loss reserves quarterly. When management determines that the estimated ultimate claim cost requires a decrease for previously reported accident years, favorable development occurs and a reduction in losses and loss adjustment expenses is reported in the current period. If the estimated ultimate claim cost requires an increase for previously reported accident years, unfavorable development occurs and an increase in losses and loss adjustment expenses is reported in the current period. For the nine months ended September 30, 2017, the Company reported unfavorable development of approximately $18 million on the 2016 and prior accident years’ loss reserves, which at December 31, 2016 totaled approximately $1.29 billion. The unfavorable development in 2017 was primarily attributable to higher than estimated California automobile and property losses.
For the nine months ended September 30, 2017, the Company recorded catastrophe losses of approximately $59 million, which were primarily attributable to severe rainstorms in California, the impact of Hurricane Harvey in Texas and Hurricane Irma in Florida and Georgia, and storms and tornadoes in Oklahoma and Texas. The Winter of 2017 was extremely wet in California, setting new precipitation records in parts of the state.
For a further discussion of the Company’s reserving methods, see the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.2020.

Investments

The Company’s fixed maturity and equity securities are classified as “trading” and carried at fair value as required when applying the fair value option, with changes in fair value reflected in net realized investment gains or losses in the consolidated statements of operations. The majority of equity holdings, including non-redeemable preferred stocks, are actively traded on national exchanges or trading markets, and are valued at the last transaction price on the balance sheet date.


Fair Value of Financial Instruments


Financial instruments recorded in the consolidated balance sheets include investments, note receivable, other receivables, total return swaps, accounts payable, options sold, and secured and unsecured notes payable. The fair value of a financial instrument is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. Due to their short-term maturity, the carrying values of other receivables and accounts payable approximate their fair values. All investments are carried on the consolidated balance sheets at fair value, as described in Note 3. Financial Instruments of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
The Company’s financial instruments include securities issued by the U.S. government and its agencies, securities issued by states and municipal governments and agencies, certain corporate and other debt securities, equity securities, and exchange traded funds. 97.9%At June 30, 2021, 98.4% of the fair value of these financial instruments held at September 30, 2017 is based on observable market prices, observable market parameters, or is derived from such prices or parameters. The availability of observable market prices and pricing parameters can vary by financial instrument. Observable market prices and pricing parameters of a financial instrument, or a related financial instrument, are used to derive a price without requiring significant judgment.

The Company’s fixed maturity and equity securities are classified as “trading” and carried at fair value as required when applying the fair value option, with changes in fair value reflected in net realized investment gains or losses in the consolidated statements of operations. The majority of equity holdings, including non-redeemable preferred stocks, are actively traded on national exchanges or trading markets, and are valued at the last transaction price on the balance sheet date.
The Company may hold or acquire financial instruments that lack observable market prices or market parameters because they are less actively traded currently or in future periods. The fair value of such instruments is determined using techniques appropriate for each particular financial instrument. These techniques may involve some degree of judgment. The price
30

transparency of the particular financial instrument will determine the degree of judgment involved in determining the fair value of the Company’s financial instruments. Price transparency is affected by a wide variety of factors, including the type of financial instrument, whether it is a new financial instrument and not yet established in the marketplace, and the characteristics particular to the transaction. Financial instruments for which actively quoted prices or pricing parameters are available or for which fair value is derived from actively quoted prices or pricing parameters will generally have a higher degree of price transparency. By contrast, financial instruments that are thinly traded or not quoted will generally have diminished price transparency. Even in normally active markets, the price transparency for actively quoted instruments may be reduced during periods of market dislocation. Alternatively, in thinly quoted markets, the participation of market makers willing to purchase and sell a financial instrument provides a source of transparency for products that otherwise are not actively quoted.

Income Taxes

At SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, the Company’s deferred income taxes were in a net assetliability position mainly due to deferred tax assetsliabilities generated by unearned premiums, alternative minimum tax credit carryforwards, expense accruals and loss reserve discounting.unrealized gains on securities held. These deferred tax assetsliabilities were substantially offset by deferred tax liabilitiesassets resulting from deferred acquisition costsunearned premiums, loss reserve discounting, and unrealized gains on securities held.expense accruals. The Company assesses the likelihood that its deferred tax assets will be realized and, to the extent management does not believe these assets are more likely than not to be realized, a valuation allowance is established. Management’s recoverability assessment of the Company’s deferred tax assets which are ordinary in character takes into consideration the Company’s strong history of generating ordinary taxable income and a reasonable expectation that it will continue to generate ordinary taxable income in the future. Further, the Company has the capacity to recoup its ordinary deferred tax assets through tax loss carryback claims for taxes paid in prior years. Finally, the Company has various deferred tax liabilities that represent sources of future ordinary taxable income.

Management’s recoverability assessment with regard to its capital deferred tax assets is based on estimates of anticipated capital gains, tax-planning strategies available to generate future taxable capital gains, and the Company’s capacity to absorb capital losses carried back to prior years, each of which would contribute to the realization of deferred tax benefits. The Company has significant unrealized gains in its investment portfolio that could be realized through asset dispositions, at management’s discretion. In addition, the Company expects to hold certain debt securities, which are currently in loss positions, to recovery or maturity. Management believes unrealized losses related to these debt securities, which represent a portion of the unrealized loss positions at period-end, are fully realizable at maturity. Management believes its long-term time horizon for holding these securities allows it to avoid any forced sales prior to maturity. Further, the Company has the capability to generate additional realized capital gains by entering into sale-leaseback transactions using one or more of its appreciated real estate holdings. Finally, the Company has the capacity to recoup capital deferred tax assets through tax capital loss carryback claims for taxes paid within permitted carryback periods.
The Company has the capability to implement tax planning strategies as it has a steady history of generating positive cash flows from operations and believes that its liquidity needs can be met in future periods without the forced sale of its investments. This capability assists management in controlling the timing and amount of realized losses generated during future periods. By prudent utilization of some or all of these strategies, management has the intent and believes that it has the ability to generate capital gains and minimize tax losses in a manner sufficient to avoid losing the benefits of its deferred tax assets. Management will continue to assess the need for a valuation allowance on a quarterly basis. Although realization is not assured, management believes it is more likely than not that the Company’s deferred tax assets will be realized.

The Company’s effective income tax rate can be affected by several factors. These generally include large changes in fully taxable income including net realized investment gains or losses, tax-exempt investment income, other non-deductible expenses, and periodically, non-routine tax items such as adjustments to unrecognized tax benefits related to tax uncertainties. TheTax-exempt investment income of approximately $38 million coupled with pre-tax income of approximately $268 million resulted in an effective tax rate of 19.3%, below the statutory tax rate of 21%, for the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 2017 was 20.6%, compared to 18.7% for the same period in 2016. The increase in the effective tax rate was principally due to an increase of $35.6 million in total pre-tax income for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 compared to the same period in 2016,2021, while tax-exempt investment income a component of approximately $39 million coupled with pre-tax income remained relatively consistent. The Company'sof approximately $105 million resulted in a lower effective tax rate of 15.0% for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 was lower than the statutory tax rate primarily as a result of tax-exempt investment income earned.corresponding period in 2020.

Contingent Liabilities


The Company has known, and may have unknown, potential liabilities which include claims, assessments, lawsuits, or regulatory fines and penalties relating to the Company’s business. The Company continually evaluates these potential liabilities and accrues for them and/or discloses them in the notes to the consolidated financial statements where required. The Company does not believe that the ultimate resolution of currently pending legal or regulatory proceedings, either individually or in the

aggregate, will have a material adverse effect on its financial condition results of operations, or cash flows. See "Regulatory and Legal Matters" above and Note 12. Contingenciesof the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
Premiums
The Company’s insurance premiums are recognized as income ratably over the term
31

Table of the policies and in proportion to the amount of insurance protection provided. Unearned premiums are carried as a liability on the consolidated balance sheets and are computed monthly on a pro-rata basis. The Company evaluates its unearned premiums periodically for premium deficiencies by comparing the sum of expected claim costs, unamortized acquisition costs, and maintenance costs partially offset by investment income to related unearned premiums. To the extent that any of the Company’s lines of insurance business become unprofitable, a premium deficiency reserve may be required.Contents


RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
Three Months Ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 Compared to Three Months Ended SeptemberJune 30, 20162020

Revenues


Net premiums earned and net premiums written for the three months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 increased 1.3%14.2% and 2.4%16.9%, respectively, from the corresponding period in 2016.2020. The increasesCompany's net premiums earned and written for the second quarter of 2020 were each reduced by approximately $106 million due to premium refunds and credits to its eligible policyholders associated with the "Mercury Giveback" program for reduced driving and business activities following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The increase in net premiums earned and net premiums written werefor the three months ended June 30, 2021 compared to the corresponding period in 2020 was primarily due to these premium refunds and credits in the second quarter of 2020, higher average premiums per policy arising from rate increases in the California private passenger automobilehomeowners line of insurance business, and growth in the number of homeowners policies written, partially offset by a decrease in California.the number of private passenger automobile policies written. Excluding premium refunds and credits in the second quarter of 2020, net premiums earned and net premiums written for the three months ended June 30, 2021 increased 1.0% and 3.5%, respectively, from the corresponding period in 2020.

Net premiums earned included ceded premiums earned of $15.6 million and $11.8 million for the three months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively. Net premiums written included ceded premiums written of $15.8 million and $10.0 million for the three months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The increase in ceded premiums earned and ceded premiums written for the three months ended June 30, 2021 compared to the corresponding period in 2020 resulted mostly from higher reinsurance coverage and rates and growth in the covered book of business.

Net premiums earned, a GAAP measure, represents the portion of net premiums written that is recognized as revenue in the financial statements for the periods presented and earned on a pro-rata basis over the term of the policies. Net premiums written is a non-GAAP financial measure which represents the premiums charged on policies issued during a fiscal period, lessnet of any applicable reinsurance. Net premiums written is a statutory measure designed to determine production levels.


The following is a reconciliation of total net premiums earned to net premiums written:
 Three Months Ended June 30,
 20212020
 (Amounts in thousands)
Net premiums earned$926,820 $811,898 
Change in net unearned premiums30,522 7,014 
Net premiums written$957,342 $818,912 
 Three Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
    
 (Amounts in thousands)
Net premiums earned$801,205
 $790,850
Change in net unearned premium26,214
 17,525
Net premiums written$827,419
 $808,375

Expenses


Loss and expense ratios are used to interpret the underwriting experience of property and casualty insurance companies. The following table presents the Insurance Companies’ loss, expense, and combined ratios determined in accordance with GAAP:
 Three Months Ended June 30,
 20212020
Loss ratio70.9 %61.0 %
Expense ratio23.9 %27.2 %
Combined ratio (1)
94.9 %88.2 %
 Three Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
    
Loss ratio74.3% 72.9%
Expense ratio25.0% 25.2%
Combined ratio99.3%
98.1%
__________ 
(1) Combined ratio for the three months ended June 30, 2021 does not sum due to rounding.

Loss ratio is calculated by dividing losses and loss adjustment expenses by net premiums earned. The Company's loss ratio for the second quarter of 2021 and 2020 was affected by favorable development of approximately $14 million and unfavorable development of approximately $4$12 million, and $7 millionrespectively, on prior accident years' loss reserves for the third quarter of 2017 and 2016, respectively.loss adjustment expense reserves. The majority of the unfavorablefavorable development for the thirdsecond quarter of 20172021 was primarily attributable to lower than estimated losses and loss adjustment expenses in the commercial property and private passenger automobile lines of insurance business. The unfavorable
32

development for the second quarter of 2020 was primarily attributable to higher than estimated Californialosses and loss adjustment expenses in the commercial automobile, losses, while the majorityhomeowners and Florida private passenger automobile lines of the unfavorable development for the third quarter of 2016 was from the re-estimation of losses for California automobile liability coverages. insurance business.

In addition, the 20172021 loss ratio was negatively impacted by approximately $19$25 million of catastrophe losses, primarily due to the impact of Hurricane Harveyextreme weather events in Texas and Hurricane IrmaOklahoma and winter storms in Florida and Georgia.California. There was no development on prior years' catastrophe losses for the three months ended June 30, 2021. The 20162020 loss ratio was also negatively impacted by a totalapproximately $14 million of $4catastrophe losses, excluding favorable development of approximately $2 million ofon prior years' catastrophe losses, primarily due to the Sand Fire in Southernextreme weather events outside of California.

Excluding the effect of estimated prior accident years'periods’ loss development and catastrophe losses, the loss ratio was 71.4%69.7% and 71.5%57.8% for the thirdsecond quarter of 20172021 and 2016,2020, respectively. The increase in the loss ratio was primarily due to an increase in loss frequency in the private passenger automobile line of insurance business, partially offset by higher average premiums per policy arising from rate increases in the California homeowners line of insurance business and a decrease in net premiums earned for the second quarter of 2020 related to premium refunds and credits under the "Mercury Giveback" program as described above. After bottoming out in the second quarter of 2020 since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, loss frequency steadily increased through the end of 2020, and after a brief pause in the first quarter of 2021, it re-accelerated in the second quarter of 2021.


Expense ratio is calculated by dividing the sum of policy acquisition costs and other operating expenses by net premiums earned. The 2017 expense ratio for the three months ended June 30, 2021 decreased compared to the 2016 expense ratio. Policy acquisition costs for the third quarter of 2017 was lower compared to the samecorresponding period in 2016, while2020, largely due to a decrease in net premiums earned for the thirdsecond quarter of 2017 was higher compared2020 related to premium refunds and credits under the same period"Mercury Giveback" program as described above, without a corresponding decrease in 2016.policy acquisition costs and other operating expenses. The Company did not recoup commissions from its agents on the premiums returned to its eligible policyholders under the "Mercury Giveback" program. In addition, expenses for profitability-related accruals and allowance for credit losses on premiums receivable decreased.

Combined ratio is equal to loss ratio plus expense ratio and is the key measure of underwriting performance traditionally used in the property and casualty insurance industry. A combined ratio under 100% generally reflects profitable underwriting results, and a combined ratio over 100% generally reflects unprofitable underwriting results.
Income tax expense was $11.8$26.2 million and $4.7$57.3 million for the three months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016,2020, respectively. The $7.1 million increasedecrease in income tax expense was primarily due to a $26.6$150.1 million increasedecrease in total pre-tax income, while tax-exemptincome. Tax-exempt investment income, a component of total pre-tax income, remained relatively unchanged compared tosteady with the samecorresponding period in 2016.2020.


Investments


The following table presents the investment results of the Company:
Three Months Ended September 30, Three Months Ended June 30,
2017 2016 20212020
   
(Dollars in thousands) (Dollars in thousands)
Average invested assets at cost (1)
$3,630,223
 $3,391,752
Average invested assets at cost (1)
$4,657,097 $4,220,468 
Net investment income (2)
   
Net investment income (2)
Before income taxes$30,988
 $30,371
Before income taxes$30,953 $34,166 
After income taxes$27,071
 $26,777
After income taxes$27,676 $30,435 
Average annual yield on investments (2)
   
Average annual yield on investments (2)
Before income taxes3.4% 3.6%Before income taxes2.7 %3.2 %
After income taxes3.0% 3.2%After income taxes2.4 %2.9 %
Net realized investment gains (losses)$20,718
 $(15,465)
Net realized investment gainsNet realized investment gains$58,805 $158,426 
__________ 
(1)
Fixed maturities and short-term bonds at amortized cost; equities and other short-term investments at cost. Average invested assets at cost are based on the monthly amortized cost of the invested assets for each period.
(2)
Average annual yield on investments before and after income taxes decreased slightly, primarily due to the maturity and replacement of higher yielding investments purchased when market interest rates were higher, with lower yielding investments purchased during low interest rate environments. The higher net investment income before and after income taxes resulted from higher average invested assets.

(1) Fixed maturities and short-term bonds at amortized cost; equities and other short-term investments at cost. Average invested assets at cost are based on the monthly amortized cost of the invested assets for each period.
(2) Lower net investment income before and after income taxes for the three months ended June 30, 2021 compared to the corresponding period in 2020 resulted largely from a lower average yield on investments, partially offset by higher average invested assets. Average annual yield on investments before and after income taxes for the three months ended June 30, 2021 decreased compared to the corresponding period in 2020, primarily due to the maturity and replacement of higher yielding investments purchased when market interest rates were higher with lower yielding investments, as a result of
33

decreasing market interest rates.

The following tables present the components of net realized investment gains (losses) included in net income:
Three Months Ended June 30, 2021
Gains (Losses) Recognized in Net Income
 Sales
Changes in fair value
Total
 (Amounts in thousands)
Net realized investment gains (losses)
Fixed maturity securities (1)(2)
$(239)$12,448 $12,209 
Equity securities (1)(3)
13,691 32,421 46,112 
Short-term investments (1)
235 (59)176 
Note receivable (1)
— (15)(15)
Options sold491 (168)323 
Total$14,178 $44,627 $58,805 
 Three Months Ended September 30, 2017
 Gains (Losses) Recognized in Net Income
 Sales 
Changes in fair value 
 Total
      
 (Amounts in thousands)
Net realized investment gains (losses) 
     
Fixed maturity securities (1)(2)
$(476) $9,796
 $9,320
Equity securities (1)(3)
2,919
 7,765
 10,684
Short-term investments (1)
(8) 150
 142
Note receivable (1)

 (103) (103)
Total return swaps(18) 136
 118
Options sold580
 (23) 557
Total$2,997
 $17,721
 $20,718

Three Months Ended September 30, 2016Three Months Ended June 30, 2020
Gains (Losses) Recognized in Net IncomeGains (Losses) Recognized in Net Income
Sales Changes in fair value Total SalesChanges in fair valueTotal
     
(Amounts in thousands) (Amounts in thousands)
Net realized investment gains (losses)     Net realized investment gains (losses)
Fixed maturity securities (1)(2)
$231
 $(19,521) $(19,290)
Fixed maturity securities (1)(2)
$(2,040)$50,251 $48,211 
Equity securities (1)(3)
762
 (2,143) (1,381)
Equity securities (1)(3)
(13,159)111,940 98,781 
Short-term investments (1)
(528) 532
 4
Short-term investments (1)
(2,148)4,639 2,491 
Total return swaps(500) 4,672
 4,172
Note receivable (1)
Note receivable (1)
— (1)(1)
Options sold1,024
 6
 1,030
Options sold8,189 755 8,944 
Total$989
 $(16,454) $(15,465)Total$(9,158)$167,584 $158,426 
__________ 
(1)
The changes in fair value of the investment portfolio and note receivable resulted from the application of the fair value option.
(2)
The increases in fair value of fixed maturity securities during the third quarter of 2017 were primarily due to the overall improvement in the market conditions affecting fixed maturity securities. The decreases in fair value in the third quarter of 2016 were primarily caused by the overall increase in market interest rates.
(3)
The increases in fair value of equity securities during the third quarter of 2017 compared to the decreases during the third quarter of 2016 were primarily due to the overall improvement in the equity markets during the third quarter of 2017 compared to the relative decline in the equity markets during the third quarter of 2016.
(1)The changes in fair value of the investment portfolio and note receivable resulted from application of the fair value option.

(2)The increase in fair value of fixed maturity securities for the second quarter of 2021 primarily resulted from decreases in market interest rates. The increase in fair value of fixed maturity securities for the second quarter of 2020 primarily resulted from the overall improvement in fixed maturity securities markets in the second quarter of 2020, following the overall market disruptions and dislocations in the first quarter of 2020 attributable to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
(3)The primary cause for the increase in fair value of equity securities for the second quarter of 2021 was the overall improvement in equity markets. The primary cause for the increase in fair value of equity securities for the second quarter of 2020 was the overall improvement in equity markets in the second quarter of 2020, following the overall market disruptions and dislocations in the first quarter of 2020 attributable to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.













34

Table of Contents
Net Income
 Three Months Ended June 30,
20212020
 (Amounts in thousands, except per share data)
Net income$109,181 $228,211 
Basic average shares outstanding55,371 55,358 
Diluted average shares outstanding55,376 55,358 
Basic Per Share Data:
Net income$1.97 $4.12 
Net realized investment gains, net of tax$0.84 $2.26 
Diluted Per Share Data:
Net income$1.97 $4.12 
Net realized investment gains, net of tax$0.84 $2.26 

 Three Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
    
 (Amounts in thousands, except per share data)
Net income$46,485
 $26,930
Basic average shares outstanding55,324
 55,259
Diluted average shares outstanding55,334
 55,328
Basic Per Share Data:   
Net income$0.84
 $0.49
Net realized investment gains (losses), net of tax$0.24
 $(0.18)
Diluted Per Share Data:   
Net income$0.84
 $0.49
Net realized investment gains (losses), net of tax$0.24
 $(0.18)

NineSix Months Ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 Compared to NineSix Months Ended SeptemberJune 30, 20162020

Revenues

Net premiums earned and net premiums written for the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 increased 2.2%6.2% and 2.1%7.6%, respectively, from the corresponding period in 2016.2020. The increasesCompany's net premiums earned and written for the first half of 2020 were each reduced by approximately $106 million due to premium refunds and credits to its eligible policyholders associated with the "Mercury Giveback" program for reduced driving and business activities following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The increase in net premiums earned and net premiums written werefor the six months ended June 30, 2021 compared to the corresponding period in 2020 was primarily due to these premium refunds and credits in the second quarter of 2020, higher average premiums per policy arising from rate increases in the California private passenger automobilehomeowners line of insurance business, and growth in the number of homeowners policies written, partially offset by a decrease in California.the number of private passenger automobile policies written. Excluding premium refunds and credits in the second quarter of 2020, net premiums earned and net premiums written for the six months ended June 30, 2021 increased 0.1% and 1.5%, respectively, from the corresponding period in 2020.

Net premiums earned included ceded premiums earned of $31.2 million and $25.6 million for the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively. Net premiums written included ceded premiums written of $31.4 million and $21.4 million for the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The increase in ceded premiums earned and ceded premiums written for the six months ended June 30, 2021 compared to the corresponding period in 2020 resulted mostly from higher reinsurance coverage and rates and growth in the covered book of business.

The following is a reconciliation of net premiums earned to net premiums written:

 Six Months Ended June 30,
 20212020
 (Amounts in thousands)
Net premiums earned$1,842,741 $1,734,471 
Change in net unearned premiums64,983 38,656 
Net premiums written$1,907,724 $1,773,127 











35

Table of Contents
 Nine Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
    
 (Amounts in thousands)
Net premiums earned$2,388,641
 $2,337,256
Change in net unearned premiums48,022
 50,453
Net premiums written$2,436,663
 $2,387,709
Expenses

Expenses
The following table presents the Insurance Companies’ loss, expense, and combined ratios determined in accordance with GAAP:
 Six Months Ended June 30,
 20212020
Loss ratio69.7 %66.1 %
Expense ratio24.5 %26.2 %
Combined ratio
94.2 %92.3 %
 Nine Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
    
Loss ratio75.0% 75.5%
Expense ratio25.1% 25.7%
Combined ratio100.1% 101.2%

The Company's loss ratio for the first half of 2021 and 2020 was affected by favorable development of approximately $15 million and unfavorable development of approximately $18$27 million, and $69 millionrespectively, on prior accident years' loss reservesand loss adjustment expense reserves. The favorable development for the nine months ended September 30, 2017first half of 2021 was primarily attributable to lower than estimated losses and 2016, respectively.loss adjustment expenses in the commercial property and private passenger automobile lines of insurance business, partially offset by unfavorable development in the commercial automobile line of insurance business. The majority of the unfavorable development for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 resulted fromfirst half of 2020 was primarily attributable to higher than estimated Californialosses and loss adjustment expenses in the commercial automobile, and property losses, while the unfavorable development for the nine months ended September 30, 2016 was largely attributable to the re-estimation of losses for Californiahomeowners and Florida private passenger automobile liability coverages. lines of insurance business.

In addition, the 20172021 loss ratio was negatively impacted by a totalapproximately $64 million of $59catastrophe losses, excluding favorable development of approximately $4 million ofon prior years' catastrophe losses, primarily due to severe rainstorms in California, the impact of Hurricane Harveydeep freeze and other extreme weather events in Texas and Hurricane Irma in Florida and Georgia, and storms and tornadoes in Oklahoma and Texas.winter storms in California. The Winter of 2017 was extremely wet in California, setting new precipitation records in parts of the state. The 20162020 loss ratio was also negatively impacted by a totalapproximately $18 million of $23catastrophe losses, excluding favorable development of approximately $4 million ofon prior years' catastrophe losses, primarily due to severe storms in Texas and in Northernextreme weather events outside of California and claims from the Sand Firewindstorms in Southern California.

Excluding the effect of estimated prior accident years'periods’ loss development and catastrophe losses, the loss ratio was 71.7%67.0% and 71.6%63.5% for the nine months ended September 30, 2017first half of 2021 and 2016,2020, respectively.
The 2017 expenseincrease in the loss ratio decreased comparedwas primarily due to an increase in loss frequency and severity in the 2016 expense ratio. Policy acquisition costsprivate passenger automobile line of insurance business, partially offset by higher average premiums per policy arising from rate increases in the California homeowners line of insurance business and advertising expenses for the nine months ended September 30, 2017 were lower compared to the same perioda decrease in 2016, while net premiums earned for the ninefirst half of 2020 related to premium refunds and credits under the "Mercury Giveback" program as described above. After bottoming out in the second quarter of 2020 since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, loss frequency steadily increased through the end of 2020, and after a brief pause in the first quarter of 2021, it re-accelerated in the second quarter of 2021.

The expense ratio for the six months ended SeptemberJune 30, 2017 was higher2021 decreased compared to the samecorresponding period in 2016.2020, largely due to a decrease in net premiums earned for the first half of 2020 related to premium refunds and credits under the "Mercury Giveback" program as described above, without a corresponding decrease in policy acquisition costs and other operating expenses. The Company did not recoup commissions from its agents on the premiums returned to its eligible policyholders under the "Mercury Giveback" program. In addition, expenses for profitability-related accruals and allowance for credit losses on premiums receivable decreased.
Income tax expense was $32.5$51.6 million and $22.9$15.8 million for the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and 2016,2020, respectively. The $9.6 million increase in income tax expense was primarily due to a $35.6$163.1 million increase in total pre-tax income, while tax-exemptincome. Tax-exempt investment income, a component of total pre-tax income, remained relatively unchanged compared tosteady with the samecorresponding period in 2016.2020.















36

Table of Contents
Investments


The following table presents the investment results of the Company:
Nine Months Ended September 30, Six Months Ended June 30,
2017 2016 20212020
   
(Dollars in thousands) (Dollars in thousands)
Average invested assets at cost (1)
$3,563,855
 $3,359,037
Average invested assets at cost (1)
$4,590,386 $4,218,721 
Net investment income (2)
   
Net investment income (2)
Before income taxes$94,058
 $91,440
Before income taxes$63,232 $68,661 
After income taxes$82,381
 $80,365
After income taxes$56,460 $60,968 
Average annual yield on investments (2)
   
Average annual yield on investments (2)
Before income taxes3.5% 3.6%Before income taxes2.8 %3.3 %
After income taxes3.1% 3.2%After income taxes2.5 %2.9 %
Net realized investment gains$66,334
 $54,973
Net realized investment gains (losses)Net realized investment gains (losses)$100,496 $(92,894)
__________

(1) Fixed maturities and short-term bonds at amortized cost; equities and other short-term investments at cost. Average invested assets at cost are based on the monthly amortized cost of the invested assets for each period.
(1)
Fixed maturities and short-term bonds at amortized cost; equities and other short-term investments at cost. Average invested assets at cost are based on the monthly amortized cost of the invested assets for each period.
(2)
Average annual yield on investments before and after income taxes decreased slightly, primarily due to the maturity and replacement of higher yielding investments purchased when market interest rates were higher, with lower yielding investments purchased during low interest rate environments. The higher net investment income before and after income taxes resulted from higher average invested assets.

(2) Lower net investment income before and after income taxes for the six months ended June 30, 2021 compared to the corresponding period in 2020 resulted largely from a lower average yield on investments, partially offset by higher average invested assets. Average annual yield on investments before and after income taxes for the six months ended June 30, 2021 decreased compared to the corresponding period in 2020, primarily due to the maturity and replacement of higher yielding investments purchased when market interest rates were higher with lower yielding investments, as a result of decreasing market interest rates.

The following tables present the components of net realized investment gains (losses) included in net income:
Six Months Ended June 30, 2021
Gains (Losses) Recognized in Net Income
 Sales
Changes in fair value
Total
 (Amounts in thousands)
Net realized investment gains (losses)
Fixed maturity securities (1)(2)
$(3,485)$4,391 $906 
Equity securities (1)(3)
31,648 66,942 98,590 
Short-term investments (1)
236 245 
Note receivable (1)
— (28)(28)
Options sold861 (78)783 
Total$29,260 $71,236 $100,496 
Nine Months Ended September 30, 2017Six Months Ended June 30, 2020
Gains (Losses) Recognized in Net IncomeGains (Losses) Recognized in Net Income
Sales 
Changes in fair value 
 Total SalesChanges in fair valueTotal
     
(Amounts in thousands) (Amounts in thousands)
Net realized investment gains (losses)     Net realized investment gains (losses)
Fixed maturity securities (1)(2)
$(1,666) $45,705
 $44,039
Fixed maturity securities (1)(2)
$(2,667)$238 $(2,429)
Equity securities (1)(3)
8,937
 14,227
 23,164
Equity securities (1)(3)
(24,474)(74,433)(98,907)
Short-term investments (1)
1
 (89) (88)
Short-term investments (1)
(2,248)(2,246)
Note receivable (1)

 (103) (103)
Note receivable (1)
— 32 32 
Total return swaps(1,044) (1,491) (2,535)
Options sold1,843
 14
 1,857
Options sold10,175 481 10,656 
Total$8,071
 $58,263
 $66,334
Total$(19,214)$(73,680)$(92,894)
37

 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2016
 Gains (Losses) Recognized in Net Income
 Sales Changes in fair value Total
      
 (Amounts in thousands)
Net realized investment gains (losses)     
Fixed maturity securities (1)(2)
$1,864
 $20,913
 $22,777
Equity securities (1)(3)
7,871
 13,430
 21,301
Short-term investments (1)
(528) 184
 (344)
Total return swap(681) 8,596
 7,915
Options sold3,358
 (34) 3,324
Total$11,884
 $43,089
 $54,973
Table of Contents
__________ 
(1)
The changes in fair value of the investment portfolio and note receivable resulted from the application of the fair value option.
(2)
The increases in fair value of fixed maturity securities during the nine months ended September 30, 2017 and 2016 were primarily due to the overall improvement in the market conditions affecting fixed maturity securities, combined with the overall decrease in market interest rates.
(3)
The increases in fair value of equity securities during the nine months ended September 30, 2017 and 2016 were primarily due to the overall improvement in the equity markets.

(1)The changes in fair value of the investment portfolio and note receivable resulted from application of the fair value option.

(2)The increase in fair value of fixed maturity securities for the first half of 2021 primarily resulted from decreases in market interest rates during the second quarter of 2021 and the overall improvement in fixed maturity securities markets during the first half of 2021. The increase in fair value of fixed maturity securities for the first half of 2020 primarily resulted from the overall improvement in fixed maturity securities markets in the second quarter of 2020, following the overall market disruptions and dislocations in the first quarter of 2020 attributable to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
(3)The primary cause for the increase in fair value of equity securities for the first half of 2021 was the overall improvement in equity markets. The primary cause for the decrease in fair value of equity securities for the first half of 2020 was the overall market disruptions and dislocations in the first quarter of 2020 following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The steep decline in fair value of equity securities in the first quarter of 2020 significantly recovered in the second quarter of 2020.

Net Income
 Six Months Ended June 30,
20212020
 (Amounts in thousands, except per share data)
Net income$216,176 $89,007 
Basic average shares outstanding55,366 55,358 
Diluted average shares outstanding55,375 55,358 
Basic Per Share Data:
Net income$3.90 $1.61 
Net realized investment gains (losses), net of tax$1.43 $(1.32)
Diluted Per Share Data:
Net income$3.90 $1.61 
Net realized investment gains (losses), net of tax$1.43 $(1.32)

 Nine Months Ended September 30,
 2017 2016
    
 (Amounts in thousands, except per share data)
Net income$125,098
 $99,126
Basic average shares outstanding55,311
 55,238
Diluted average shares outstanding55,323
 55,304
Basic Per Share Data:   
Net income$2.26
 $1.79
Net realized investment gains, net of tax$0.78
 $0.65
Diluted Per Share Data:   
Net income$2.26
 $1.79
Net realized investment gains, net of tax$0.78
 $0.65




LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES


A. Cash Flows


The Company has generated positive cash flow from operations since the public offering of its common stock in November 1985. The Company does not attempt to match the duration and timing of asset maturities with those of liabilities; rather, it manages its portfolio with a view towards maximizing total return with an emphasis on after-tax income. With combined cash and short-term investments of $651.0$787.1 million at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 as well as $50$75 million of credit available on a $50$75 million revolving credit facility, the Company believes its cash flow from operations is adequate to satisfy its liquidity requirements without the forced sale of investments. Investment maturities are also available to meet the Company’s liquidity needs. However, the Company operates in a rapidly evolving and often unpredictable business environment that may change the timing or amount of expected future cash receipts and expenditures. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that the Company’s sources of funds will be sufficient to meet its liquidity needs or that the Company will not be required to raise additional funds to meet those needs or for future business expansion, through the sale of equity or debt securities or from credit facilities with lending institutions.


Net cash provided by operating activities for the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 was $276.5$317.2 million, an increase of $62.7$57.7 million compared to the corresponding period in 2016.2020. The increase was primarily due to an increase in premium collections, andpartially offset by an increase in payments for income taxes, a decrease in operating expenses paid, partially offset by higher paidcollections from reinsurers on reinsurance recoverables, and an increase in payments for losses and loss adjustment expenses. The Company utilized the cash provided by operating activities during the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 primarily for the net purchases of investment securities and payment of dividends to its shareholders and net purchasesshareholders.

38

Table of investment securities.Contents

The following table presents the estimated fair value of fixed maturity securities at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 by contractual maturity in the next five years:
Fixed Maturity Securities
(Amounts in thousands)
Due in one year or less$407,133 
Due after one year through two years367,483 
Due after two years through three years131,316 
Due after three years through four years84,408 
Due after four years through five years165,224 
Total due within five years$1,155,564 
 Fixed Maturity Securities
 (Amounts in thousands)
Due in one year or less$215,488
Due after one year through two years197,394
Due after two years through three years102,250
Due after three years through four years92,533
Due after four years through five years68,375
Total due within five years$676,040

B. Reinsurance

For California homeowners policies, the Company has reduced its catastrophe exposure from earthquakes by placing earthquake risks directly with the California Earthquake Authority ("CEA"). However, the Company continues to have catastrophe exposure to fires following an earthquake.

The Company is the assuming reinsurer under a Catastrophe Participation Reinsurance Contract (the "Contract") effective through December 31, 2021. The Company reimburses a group of affiliates of a ceding company for a proportional share of a portfolio of catastrophe losses based on the premiums ceded to the Company under the Contract, to the extent the actual loss ratio exceeds the threshold loss ratio of 71%. The total assumed premium under the Contract is $12.5 million and $7.5 million for the 12 months ending December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The total possible amount of losses for the Company under the Contract is $31.3 million and $18.8 million for the years ending December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. If the actual loss ratio is less than the threshold loss ratio, the Company is eligible to receive a certain portion of the underwriting profit. The Company recognized $3.1 million and $1.9 million in earned premiums and $4.0 million and $1.3 million in incurred losses under the Contract for the three months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively, and $6.3 million and $3.8 million in earned premiums and $7.9 million and $2.7 million in incurred losses for the six months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020, respectively.

The Company is the ceding party to a Catastrophe Reinsurance Treaty ("Treaty"(the "Treaty") covering a wide range of perils that has been renewedis effective through June 30, 2018. The Treaty for2022. For the 12 months ending June 30, 20182022 and 2021, the Treaty provides $205$792 million and $717 million of coverage, respectively, on a per occurrence basis after covered catastrophe losses exceed the $10$40 million Company retention limit. The first $190 million of losses above the Company's $10 million retention are covered 100% by the reinsurers. Losses above $200 million are shared pro-rata with 5% coverage by the reinsurers and 95% retention by the Company, up to $15 million total coverage provided by the reinsurers. The Treaty specifically excludes coverage for any Florida business and for California earthquake losses on fixed property policies such as homeowners, but does cover losses from fires following an earthquake. The annual premium forTreaty includes additional restrictions as noted in the Treaty is approximately $19 million and $6 milliontables below.

Coverage on individual catastrophes provided for the 12 months ending June 30, 20182022 under the Treaty is presented below in various layers:
 Catastrophe Losses and LAE
In Excess ofUp toPercentage of Coverage
 (Amounts in millions)
Retained$— $40 — %
Layer of Coverage40 100 70 
Layer of Coverage (1) (2)
100 450 100 
Layer of Coverage (1) (3) (4) (5)
450 850 100 
__________ 
(1) Layer of Coverage represents multiple actual treaty layers that are grouped for presentation purposes.
(2) 4.1% of this layer excludes Texas.
(3) 11.9% of this layer excludes Texas.
(4) 15.0% of this layer covers California, Arizona and 2017, respectively. Nevada only.
(5) 12.7% of this layer covers only California wildfires and fires following an earthquake in California, and is not subject to reinstatement.



39

Table of Contents
Coverage on individual catastrophes provided for the 12 months ended June 30, 2021 under the Treaty is presented below in various layers:
Catastrophe Losses and LAE
In Excess ofUp toPercentage of Coverage
(Amounts in millions)
Retained$— $40 — %
Layer of Coverage40 100 70 
Layer of Coverage (1)
100 400 100 
Layer of Coverage (1) (2) (3)
400 775 100 
__________ 
(1) Layer of Coverage represents multiple actual treaty layers that are grouped for presentation purposes.
(2) 14.2% of this layer covers California, Arizona and Nevada only.
(3) 13.4% of this layer covers only California wildfires and fires following an earthquake in California, and is not subject to reinstatement.

The table below presents the combined total reinsurance premiums under the Treaty (annual premiums and reinstatement premiums) for the 12 months ending June 30, 2022 and 2021, respectively:
Treaty
Annual Premium (1)
 Reinstatement Premium (2)
Total Combined Premium (2)
 (Amounts in millions)
For the 12 months ending June 30, 2022$55 $— $55 
For the 12 months ended June 30, 2021$50 $— $50 
__________ 
(1) The increase in the annual premium reflectsis primarily due to an increase in reinsurance coverage and growth in the increased coverage. covered book of business.
(2) The reinstatement premium and the total combined premium for the treaty period ending June 30, 2022 are projected amounts to be paid based on the assumption that there will be no reinstatements occurring during this treaty period. The reinstatement premium for the treaty period ended June 30, 2021 is zero, as there were no actual reinstatement premiums paid.

The Treaty ending June 30, 2022 and 2021 each provides for one full reinstatement of coverage limits. Reinstatement premiums are based on the amount of reinsurance benefits used by the Company at 100% of the annual premium rate, with the exception of the reinstatement restrictions noted in the tables above, up to the maximum reinstatement premium of approximately $51 million and $46 million if the full amount of benefit is used for the 12 months ending June 30, 2022 and 2021, respectively.

The total amount of reinstatement premiums is recorded as ceded reinstatement premiums written at the time of the catastrophe event based on the total amount of reinsurance benefits expected to be used for the event, and such reinstatement premiums are recognized ratably over the remaining term of the Treaty as ceded reinstatement premiums earned.

The catastrophe events that occurred in 2021 caused approximately $64 million in losses to the Company, resulting primarily from the deep freeze and other extreme weather events in Texas and Oklahoma and winter storms in California. No reinsurance benefits were available under the Treaty for these losses as none of the 2021 catastrophe events individually resulted in losses in excess of the Company’s per-occurrence retention limit of $40 million under the Treaty for the 12 months ended June 30, 2017 provided $1152021.

The catastrophe events that occurred in 2020 caused approximately $70 million in losses to the Company as of coverage on a per occurrence basis after coveredJune 30, 2021, resulting primarily from wildfires and windstorms in California and extreme weather events outside of California. No reinsurance benefits were available under the Treaty for these losses as none of the 2020 catastrophe events individually resulted in losses exceeded a $100in excess of the Company’s per-occurrence retention limit of $40 million Company retention.under the Treaty for each of the 12 months ended June 30, 2021 and 2020.


The Company carries a commercial umbrella reinsurance treaty and seeks facultative arrangements for large property risks. In addition, the Company has other reinsurance in force that is not material to the consolidated financial statements. If any reinsurers are unable to perform their obligations under a reinsurance treaty, the Company will be required, as primary insurer,
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to discharge all obligations to its policyholders in their entirety.

C. Invested Assets


Portfolio Composition


An important component of the Company’s financial results is the return on its investment portfolio. The Company’s investment strategy emphasizes safety of principal and consistent income generation, within a total return framework. The investment strategy has historically focused on maximizing after-tax yield with a primary emphasis on maintaining a well-diversified, investment grade, fixed income portfolio to support the underlying liabilities and achieve return on capital and profitable growth. The Company believes that investment yield is maximized by selecting assets that perform favorably on a long-term basis and by disposing of certain assets to enhance after-tax yield and minimize the potential effect of downgrades and defaults. The Company believes that this strategy enables the optimal investment performance necessary to sustain investment income over time. The Company’s portfolio management approach utilizes a market risk and consistent asset allocation strategy as the primary basis for the allocation of interest sensitive, liquid and credit assets as well as for determining overall below investment grade exposure and diversification requirements. Within the ranges set by the asset allocation strategy, tactical investment decisions are made in consideration of prevailing market conditions.
The following table presents the composition of the total investment portfolio of the Company at SeptemberJune 30, 2017:2021:
Cost (1)
 Fair Value
Cost (1)
Fair Value
   
(Amounts in thousands) (Amounts in thousands)
Fixed maturity securities:   Fixed maturity securities:
U.S. government bonds and agencies$13,919
 $13,892
U.S. government bondsU.S. government bonds$14,240 $14,279 
Municipal securities2,423,154
 2,483,750
Municipal securities2,687,322 2,845,983 
Mortgage-backed securities31,941
 32,726
Mortgage-backed securities91,437 92,548 
Corporate securities159,555
 161,883
Corporate securities279,398 283,407 
Collateralized loan obligations93,443
 94,325
Collateralized loan obligations276,577 278,336 
Other asset-backed securities54,875
 55,160
Other asset-backed securities247,020 247,224 
2,776,887
 2,841,736
3,595,994 3,761,777 
Equity securities:   Equity securities:
Common stock366,636
 410,834
Common stock541,404 733,546 
Non-redeemable preferred stock30,275
 30,665
Non-redeemable preferred stock52,429 54,211 
Private equity funds12,831
 8,684
Private equity fund measured at net asset value (2)
69,668
 69,011
Private equity funds measured at net asset value (2)
Private equity funds measured at net asset value (2)
101,080 82,799 
479,410
 519,194
694,913 870,556 
Short-term investments366,512
 366,402
Short-term investments409,400 408,471 
Total investments$3,622,809
 $3,727,332
Total investments$4,700,307 $5,040,804 
______________

(1)    Fixed maturities and short-term bonds at amortized cost; equities and other short-term investments at cost.
(2)    The fair value is measured using the NAV practical expedient. See Note 5. Fair Value Measurements of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.
(1)
Fixed maturities and short-term bonds at amortized cost; equities and other short-term investments at cost.
(2)
The fair value is measured using the NAV practical expedient. See Note 5. Fair Value Measurements of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements for additional information.
At SeptemberJune 30, 2017, 66.4%2021, 50.4% of the Company’s total investment portfolio at fair value and 87.1%67.6% of its total fixed maturity securities at fair value were invested in tax-exempt state and municipal bonds. Equity holdings consist of non-redeemable preferred stocks, dividend-bearing common stocks on which dividend income is partially tax-sheltered by the 70%50% corporate dividend received deduction, and private equity funds including a fund measured at net asset value.funds. At SeptemberJune 30, 2017, 86.7%2021, 98.8% of short-term investments consisted of highly rated short-duration securities redeemable on a daily or weekly basis. The Company does not have any direct equity investment in sub-prime lenders.


Fixed Maturity Securities and Short-Term Investments


Fixed maturity securities include debt securities, which are mostly long-term bonds and other debt with maturities of at least one year from purchase, and which may have fixed or variable principal payment schedules, may be held for indefinite periods of time, and may be used as a part of the Company’s asset/liability strategy or sold in response to changes in interest rates, anticipated prepayments, risk/reward characteristics, liquidity needs, tax planning considerations, or other economic factors. Short-term instruments include money market accounts, options, and short-term bonds that are highly rated short duration securities and redeemable within one year.
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A primary exposure for the fixed maturity securities is interest rate risk. The longer the duration, the more sensitive the asset is to market interest rate fluctuations. As assets with longer maturity dates tend to produce higher current yields, the Company’s historical investment philosophy has resulted in a portfolio with a moderate duration. The Company's portfolio is heavily weighted in investment grade tax-exempt municipal bonds. Fixed maturity securities purchased by the Company typically have call options attached, which further reduce the duration of the asset as interest rates decline. The holdings that are heavily weighted with high coupon issues, are expected to be called prior to maturity. Modified duration measures the length of time it takes, on average, to receive the present value of all the cash flows produced by a bond, including reinvestment of interest. As it measures four factors (maturity, coupon rate, yield and call terms) which determine sensitivity to changes in interest rates, modified duration is considered a better indicator of price volatility than simple maturity alone.

The following table presents the maturities and durations of the Company's fixed maturity securities and short-term investments:
June 30, 2021December 31, 2020
(in years)
Fixed Maturity Securities
Nominal average maturity:
excluding short-term investments10.811.7
including short-term investments9.810.6
Call-adjusted average maturity:
excluding short-term investments4.14.1
including short-term investments3.73.7
Modified duration reflecting anticipated early calls:
excluding short-term investments3.23.4
including short-term investments2.93.0
Short-Term Investments
 September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016
    
 (in years)
Fixed Maturity Securities   
Nominal average maturity:   
excluding short-term investments13.2 11.9
including short-term investments11.7 10.5
Call-adjusted average maturity:   
excluding short-term investments5.1 4.5
including short-term investments4.6 4.0
Modified duration reflecting anticipated early calls:   
excluding short-term investments4.4 4.1
including short-term investments3.9 3.7
Short-Term Investments 

Another exposure related to the fixed maturity securities is credit risk, which is managed by maintaining a weighted-average portfolio credit quality rating of A+, at fair value, at SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, consistent with the average rating at December 31, 2016.2020. The Company's municipal bond holdings, 99.6% of which 89.3% were tax exempt, represented 87.1%67.6% of its fixed maturity securities portfolio at June 30, 2021, at fair value, at September 30, 2017, and are broadly diversified geographically. See ItemPart I-Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risks for a breakdown of municipal bond holdings by state.
To calculate the weighted-average credit quality ratings disclosed throughout this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, individual securities were weighted based on fair value and credit quality ratings assigned by nationally recognized securities rating organizations.

Taxable holdings consist principally of investment grade issues. At SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, fixed maturity securities holdings rated below investment grade and non-rated bonds totaled $68.1$19.9 million and $75.7$112.2 million, respectively, at fair value, and represented 2.4%0.5% and 2.7%3.0%, respectively, of total fixed maturity securities. The majority of non-rated issues are a result of municipalities pre-funding and collateralizing those issues with U.S. government securities with an implicit AAA equivalent credit risk. At December 31, 2016,2020, fixed maturity securities holdings rated below investment grade and non-rated bonds totaled $51.6$25.5 million and $86.6$38.4 million, respectively, at fair value, and represented 1.8%0.7% and 3.1%1.1%, respectively, of total fixed maturity securities.
CreditThe overall credit ratings for the Company’s fixed maturity securities portfolio were relatively stable during the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, with 94.5%97.6% of fixed maturity securities at fair value experiencing no change in their overall rating. 2.3%0.5% and 3.2%1.9% of fixed maturity securities at fair value experienced upgrades and downgrades, respectively, during the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 2017; the downgrades were slight and still within the investment grade portfolio.2021.

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The following table presents the credit quality ratings of the Company’s fixed maturity securities by security type at fair value:
 September 30, 2017 June 30, 2021
 (Dollars in thousands) (Dollars in thousands)
Security Type 
AAA(1)
 
AA(1)
 
A(1)
 
BBB(1)
 
Non-Rated/Other(1)
 
Total Fair
Value(1)
Security Type
AAA(1)
AA(1)
A(1)
BBB(1)
Non-Rated/Other(1)
Total Fair
Value(1)
U.S. government bonds and agencies:            
U.S. government bonds:U.S. government bonds:
Treasuries $13,892
 $
 $
 $
 $
 $13,892
Treasuries$14,279 $— $— $— $— $14,279 
Government agency 
 
 
 
 
 
Total 13,892
 
 
 
 
 13,892
Total14,279 — — — — 14,279 
 100.0% % % % % 100.0%100.0 %— %— %— %— %100.0 %
Municipal securities:            Municipal securities:
Insured 26,586
 163,640
 280,926
 29,001
 17,717
 517,870
Insured47,593 166,501 110,045 37,311 3,180 364,630 
Uninsured 50,560
 665,532
 1,002,591
 180,825
 66,372
 1,965,880
Uninsured115,251 815,919 1,318,660 190,597 40,926 2,481,353 
Total 77,146
 829,172
 1,283,517
 209,826
 84,089
 2,483,750
Total162,844 982,420 1,428,705 227,908 44,106 2,845,983 
 3.1% 33.4% 51.7% 8.4% 3.4% 100.0%5.7 %34.5 %50.3 %8.0 %1.5 %100.0 %
Mortgage-backed securities:            Mortgage-backed securities:
Commercial 
 11,968
 8,390
 3,995
 
 24,353
Commercial13,102 6,470 1,456 4,104 — 25,132 
Agencies 2,685
 
 
 
 
 2,685
Agencies895 — — — — 895 
Non-agencies:            Non-agencies:
Prime 
 
 368
 77
 1,169
 1,614
Prime18,934 45,142 79 48 571 64,774 
Alt-A 
 
 
 1,049
 3,025
 4,074
Alt-A— 614 — 548 585 1,747 
Total 2,685
 11,968
 8,758
 5,121
 4,194
 32,726
Total32,931 52,226 1,535 4,700 1,156 92,548 
 8.2% 36.6% 26.8% 15.6% 12.8% 100.0%35.6 %56.4 %1.7 %5.1 %1.2 %100.0 %
Corporate securities:            Corporate securities:
Basic materials 
 
 
 6,331
 2,709
 9,040
Basic materials— — — — 2,741 2,741 
Communications 
 
 162
 5,720
 
 5,882
Communications— — 187 477 — 664 
Consumer, cyclical 
 
 1,158
 11,213
 4,620
 16,991
Consumer, cyclical— 1,998 7,403 38,830 — 48,231 
Consumer, non-cyclical 
 
 317
 7,745
 
 8,062
Consumer, non-cyclical— 10,202 14,227 11,815 — 36,244 
Energy 
 
 3,130
 21,347
 30,897
 55,374
Energy— 6,658 2,201 28,196 — 37,055 
Financial 
 848
 16,785
 28,539
 
 46,172
Financial— 22,792 63,066 32,537 9,420 127,815 
Industrial 
 
 165
 4,360
 
 4,525
Industrial— 443 2,036 15,240 — 17,719 
Technology 
 
 
 
 8,751
 8,751
Utilities 
 
 6,371
 149
 566
 7,086
Utilities— — 9,324 3,614 — 12,938 
Total 
 848
 28,088
 85,404
 47,543
 161,883
Total— 42,093 98,444 130,709 12,161 283,407 
 % 0.5% 17.4% 52.7% 29.4% 100.0%— %14.9 %34.7 %46.1 %4.3 %100.0 %
Collateralized loan obligations:            Collateralized loan obligations:
Corporate 3,507
 1,000
 81,318
 
 8,500
 94,325
Corporate40,481 35,257 150,299 — 52,299 278,336 
Total 3,507
 1,000
 81,318
 
 8,500
 94,325
Total40,481 35,257 150,299 — 52,299 278,336 
 3.7% 1.1% 86.2% % 9.0% 100.0%14.5 %12.7 %54.0 %— %18.8 %100.0 %
            
Other asset-backed securities 17,338
 14,890
 7,567
 15,365
 
 55,160
Other asset-backed securities59,987 121,701 34,097 18,381 13,058 247,224 
 31.4% 27.0% 13.7% 27.9% % 100.0%24.3 %49.2 %13.8 %7.4 %5.3 %100.0 %
Total $114,568
 $857,878
 $1,409,248
 $315,716
 $144,326
 $2,841,736
Total$310,522 $1,233,697 $1,713,080 $381,698 $122,780 $3,761,777 
 4.0% 30.2% 49.6% 11.1% 5.1% 100.0%8.3 %32.8 %45.5 %10.1 %3.3 %100.0 %
_____________
______________
(1)
Intermediate ratings are included at each level (e.g., AA includes AA+, AA and AA-).
(1)Intermediate ratings are included at each level (e.g., AA includes AA+, AA and AA-).


U.S. Government Bonds and Agencies


The Company had $13.9$14.3 million and $12.3$13.8 million, or 0.5% andeach representing 0.4% of its fixed maturity securities portfolio, at fair value, in U.S. government bonds and agencies at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, respectively. In February 2016,At June 30, 2021, Moody's

and Fitch affirmed theirratings for U.S. government-issued debt were Aaa and AAA, ratings, respectively, for U.S. government-issued debt, although a significant increase in government
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deficits and debt could lead to a downgrade. The Company understands that market participants continue to use rates of return on U.S. government debt as a risk-free rate and have continued to invest in U.S. Treasury securities. The modified duration of the U.S. government bonds and agencies portfolio reflecting anticipated early calls was 2.00.8 years and 2.21.0 yearsat SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, respectively.


Municipal Securities


At September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016, respectively, theThe Company had $2.48$2.85 billion and $2.45$2.79 billion, or 87.4%75.7% and 87.0%78.6% of its fixed maturity securities portfolio, at fair value, in municipal securities, $517.9$364.6 million and $722.7$377.0 million of which were insured.insured, at June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively. The underlying ratings for insured municipal securitiesbonds have been factored into the average rating of the securities by the rating agencies with no significant disparity between the absolute securities ratings and the underlying credit ratings as of SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016.2020.
At SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, 60.6% and 59.9%, respectively, 63.2% and 60.6% of the insured municipal securities, at fair value, most of which were investment grade, were insured by bond insurers that providedprovide credit enhancement and ratings reflecting the credit of the underlying issuers. At SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, the average rating of the Company’s insured investment grade municipal securities was A+, with an underlyingwhich corresponded to the average rating of A+.the investment grade bond insurers. The remaining 36.8%39.4% and 39.4%40.1% of insured municipal securities at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, respectively, were non-rated or below investment grade, and were insured by bond insurers that the Company believes did not provide credit enhancement. The modified duration of the municipal securities portfolio reflecting anticipated early calls was 4.63.2 years and 4.33.4 years at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, respectively.
The Company considers the strength of the underlying credit as a buffer against potential market value declines which may result from future rating downgrades of the bond insurers. In addition, the Company has a long-term time horizon for its municipal bond holdings, which generally allows it to recover the full principal amounts upon maturity and avoid forced sales prior to maturity of bonds that have declined in market value due to the bond insurers’ rating downgrades. Based on the uncertainty surrounding the financial condition of these insurers, it is possible that there will be additionalfuture downgrades to below investment grade ratings by the rating agencies in the future, and such downgrades could impact the estimated fair value of municipal bonds.

Mortgage-Backed Securities


At SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016, respectively,2020, the mortgage-backed securities portfolio of $32.7$92.5 million and $39.8$93.3 million, or 1.2%2.5% and 1.4%2.6%, respectively, of the Company's fixed maturity securities portfolio, at fair value, was categorized as loans to “prime” residential and commercial real estate borrowers, except for $4.1borrowers. The Company had holdings of $25.1 million and $4.5$17.6 million at fair value ($4.024.7 million and $4.5 million at amortized cost) of Alt-A mortgages. Alt-A mortgage-backed securities are at fixed or variable rates and include certain securities that are collateralized by residential mortgage loans issued to borrowers with credit profiles stronger than those of sub-prime borrowers, but do not qualify for prime financing terms due to high loan-to-value ratios or limited supporting documentation. The Company had holdings of $24.4 million and $30.0 million at fair value ($23.9 million and $29.6$17.2 million at amortized cost) in commercial mortgage-backed securities at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, respectively.
The weighted-average rating of the Company’s Alt-A mortgage-backed securities at September 30, 2017 and December 31, 2016 was B-, while the weighted-average rating of the entire mortgage-backed securities portfolio was AAA at Septembereach of June 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016.2020. The modified duration of the mortgage-backed securities portfolio reflecting anticipated early calls was 4.26.2 years and 3.76.4 years at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, respectively.

Corporate Securities


Corporate securities included in fixed maturity securities arewere as follows:
June 30, 2021December 31, 2020
 (Dollars in thousands)
Corporate securities at fair value$283,407 $241,366 
Percentage of total fixed maturity securities portfolio7.5 %6.8 %
Modified duration2.8 years1.7 years
Weighted-average ratingA-A-

44
 September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016
    
 (Amounts in thousands)
Corporate securities at fair value$161,883
 $189,688
Percentage of total fixed maturity securities portfolio5.7% 6.7%
Modified duration2.2 years
 2.4 years
Weighted-average ratingBBB-
 BBB-


Table of Contents
Collateralized Loan Obligations


Collateralized loan obligations included in fixed maturity securities arewere as follows:
June 30, 2021December 31, 2020
 (Dollars in thousands)
Collateralized loan obligations at fair value$278,336 $256,891 
Percentage of total fixed maturity securities portfolio7.4 %7.2 %
Modified duration5.6 years4.8 years
Weighted-average ratingA+AA-
 September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016
    
 (Amounts in thousands)
Collateralized loan obligations at fair value$94,325
 $86,525
Percentage of total fixed maturity securities portfolio3.3% 3.1%
Modified duration5.8 years
 4.4 years
Weighted-average ratingA
 A

Other Asset-Backed Securities


Other asset-backed securities included in fixed maturity securities arewere as follows:
June 30, 2021December 31, 2020
 (Dollars in thousands)
Other asset-backed securities at fair value$247,224 $153,261 
Percentage of total fixed maturity securities portfolio6.6 %4.3 %
Modified duration1.2 years1.6 years
Weighted-average ratingAAAA+
 September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016
    
 (Amounts in thousands)
Other asset-backed securities at fair value$55,160
 $36,996
Percentage of total fixed maturity securities portfolio1.9% 1.3%
Modified duration1.3 years
 1.5 years
Weighted-average ratingA+
 A


Equity Securities


Equity holdings of $519.2$870.6 million and $803.9 million at fair value, consistas of June 30, 2021 and December 31, 2020, respectively, consisted of non-redeemable preferred stocks, common stocks on which dividend income is partially tax-sheltered by the 70%50% corporate dividend received deduction, and private equity funds includingfunds. The Company had a fund measured at net asset value. The net gainsgain (loss) of $66.9 million and $(74.4) million due to changes in fair value of the Company’s equity securities portfolio duringfor the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 2017 were $14.2 million.2021 and 2020, respectively. The primary cause for the increase in fair value of the Company’s equity securities portfolio for the six months ended June 30, 2021 was the overall improvement in equity markets. The primary cause for the decrease in fair value of the Company’s equity markets duringsecurities portfolio for the ninesix months ended SeptemberJune 30, 2017.2020 was the overall market disruptions and dislocations in the first quarter of 2020 resulting from the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. The steep decline in fair value of the Company's equity securities in the first quarter of 2020 significantly recovered in the second quarter of 2020.


The Company’s common stock allocation is intended to enhance the return of and provide diversification for the total portfolio. At SeptemberJune 30, 2017, 13.9%2021, 17.3% of the total investment portfolio at fair value was held in equity securities, compared to 10.1%17.0% at December 31, 20162020 .
D. Debt

On March 8, 2017, the Company paid off the total outstanding balance of $320 million under the existing loan and credit facility agreements with the proceeds from its public offering of $375 million of senior notes, and terminated the agreements.


On March 8, 2017, the Company completed a public debt offering issuing $375 million of senior notes. The notes are unsecured senior obligations of the Company with a 4.40%4.4% annual coupon payable on March 15 and September 15 of each year commencing September 15, 2017. The notes mature on March 15, 2027. The Company used the proceeds from the notes to pay off amounts outstanding under the existing loan and credit facilities and for general corporate purposes. The Company incurred debt issuance costs of approximately $3.4 million, inclusive of underwriters' fees. The notes were issued at a slight discount of 99.847% of par, resulting in the effective annualized interest rate including debt issuance costs of approximately 4.45%.


On March 29, 2017, the Company entered into an unsecured credit agreementthe 2017 Credit Agreement that providesprovided for revolving loans of up to $50 million and matureswas set to mature on March 29, 2022. On March 31, 2021, the Company entered into the Amended and Restated Credit Agreement that amended and restated the 2017 Credit Agreement. The Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, among other things, extended the maturity date of the loan that was the subject of the 2017 Credit Agreement to March 31, 2026, added U.S. Bank as an additional lender, and increased the aggregate commitments by all the lenders to $75 million from $50 million under the 2017 Credit Agreement. The interest rates on borrowings under the credit facility are based on the Company's debt to total capital ratio and range from LIBOR plus 112.5 basis points when the ratio is under 15%20% to LIBOR plus 162.5150.0 basis points when the ratio is greater than or equal to 25%30%. Commitment fees for the undrawn portions of the credit facility range from 12.5
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basis points when the ratio is under 15%20% to 22.5 basis points when the ratio is greater than or equal to 25%30%. The debt to total capital ratio is expressed as a percentage of (a) consolidated debt to (b) consolidated shareholders' equity plus consolidated debt. The Company's debt to total capital ratio was 17.4%14.7% at SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, resulting in a 1512.5 basis point commitment fee on the $50$75 million undrawn portion of the credit facility. As of October 26, 2017,July 29, 2021, there have been no borrowings under this facility.


The Company was in compliance with all of itsthe financial covenants pertaining to minimum statutory surplus, debt to total capital ratio, and risk based capital ratio under the unsecured credit facility at SeptemberJune 30, 2017.2021.


For additional information on debt, see Note 11. Notes Payable of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.


E. Regulatory Capital Requirements


Among other considerations, industry and regulatory guidelines suggest that the ratio of a property and casualty insurer’s annual net premiums written to statutory policyholders’ surplus should not exceed 3.0 to 1. Based on the combined surplus of all the Insurance Companies of $1.59$1.90 billion at SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, and net premiums written of $3.2$3.7 billion for the twelve months ended on that date, the ratio of net premiums written to surplus was 2.021.98 to 1 at SeptemberJune 30, 2017.2021.
 
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risks


The Company is subject to various market risk exposures primarily due to its investing and borrowing activities. Primary market risk exposures are changes in interest rates, equity prices, and credit risk. Adverse changes to these rates and prices may occur due to changes in the liquidity of a market, or to changes in market perceptions of creditworthiness and risk tolerance. The following disclosure reflects estimates of future performance and economic conditions. Actual results may differ.
Overview
The Company’s investment policies define the overall framework for managing market and investment risks, including accountability and controls over risk management activities, and specify the investment limits and strategies that are appropriate given the liquidity, surplus, product profile, and regulatory requirements of the subsidiaries. Executive oversight of investment activities is conducted primarily through the Company’s investment committee. The Company’s investment committee focuses on strategies to enhance after-tax yields, mitigate market risks, and optimize capital to improve profitability and returns.
The Company manages exposures to market risk through the use of asset allocation, duration, and credit ratings. Asset allocation limits place restrictions on the total amount of funds that may be invested within an asset class. Duration limits on the fixed maturity securities portfolio place restrictions on the amount of interest rate risk that may be taken. Comprehensive day-to-day management of market risk within defined tolerance ranges occurs as portfolio managers buy and sell within their respective markets based upon the acceptable boundaries established by investment policies.


Credit Risk


Credit risk results from uncertainty in a counterparty’s ability to meet its obligations. Credit risk is managed by maintaining a high credit quality fixed maturity securities portfolio. As of SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, the estimated weighted-average credit quality rating of the fixed maturity securities portfolio was A+, at fair value, consistent with the average rating at December 31, 2016.2020.


The following table presents municipal securities by state in descending order of holdings at fair value at SeptemberJune 30, 2017:2021: 
StatesFair ValueAverage
Rating
(Amounts in thousands)
Texas$335,487 AA-
Florida280,849 A+
New York271,870 AA-
Illinois217,205 A
California212,858 AA-
Other states1,527,714 A+
Total$2,845,983 
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StatesFair Value 
Average
Rating
 (Amounts in thousands)  
Texas$385,232
 AA-
California200,653
 A+
Florida195,019
 A+
Illinois148,309
 A-
Washington120,378
 AA-
Other states1,434,159
 A+
Total$2,483,750
  

At SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, the municipal securities portfolio was broadly diversified among the states and the largest holdings were in populous states such as Texas and California.Florida. These holdings were further diversified primarily among cities, counties, schools, public works, hospitals, and state general obligations. The Company seeks to minimize overall credit risk and ensure diversification by limiting exposure to any particular issuer.

Taxable fixed maturity securities represented 12.9%32.4% of the Company’s total fixed maturity securities portfolio at Septemberfair value at June 30, 2017. 3.8%2021. 1.2% of the Company’s taxable fixed maturity securities at fair value were comprised of U.S. government bonds, and

agencies, which were rated AAA at SeptemberJune 30, 2017. 14.1%2021. 1.2% of the Company’s taxable fixed maturity securities at fair value, representing 1.8%0.4% of its total fixed maturity securities portfolio at fair value, were rated below investment grade at SeptemberJune 30, 2017.2021. Below investment grade issues are considered “watch list” items by the Company, and their status is evaluated within the context of the Company’s overall portfolio and its investment policy on an aggregate risk management basis, as well as their ability to recover their investment on an individual issue basis.


Equity Price Risk
Equity price risk is the risk that the Company will incur losses due to adverse changes in the equity markets.


At SeptemberJune 30, 2017,2021, the Company’s primary objective for common equity investments was current income. The fair value of the equity investments consisted of $410.8$733.5 million in common stocks, $30.7$54.2 million in non-redeemable preferred stocks, and $77.7$82.8 million in private equity funds including a fund measured at net asset value.funds. Common stocks are typically valued for future economic prospects as perceived by the market.
Common stocks represented 11.0%14.6% of total investments at fair value at SeptemberJune 30, 2017.2021. Beta is a measure of a security’s systematic (non-diversifiable) risk, which is measured by the percentage change in an individual security’s return for a 1% change in the return of the market.
Based on hypothetical reductions in the overall value of the stock market, the following table illustrates estimated reductions in the overall value of the Company’s common stock portfolio at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016:2020:
June 30, 2021December 31, 2020
(Amounts in thousands, except average Beta)
Average Beta1.13 1.11 
Hypothetical reduction of 25% in the overall value of the stock market$207,227 $191,970 
Hypothetical reduction of 50% in the overall value of the stock market$414,453 $383,939 
  September 30, 2017 December 31, 2016
     
  (Amounts in thousands, except average Beta)
Average Beta 0.99
 0.83
Hypothetical reduction of 25% in the overall value of the stock market $101,373
 $70,410
Hypothetical reduction of 50% in the overall value of the stock market $202,746
 $140,820


Interest Rate Risk


Interest rate risk is the risk that the Company will incur a loss due to adverse changes in interest rates relative to the interest rate characteristics of interest bearing assets and liabilities. The Company faces interest rate risk as it invests a substantial amount of funds in interest sensitive assets and holds interest sensitive liabilities. Interest rate risk includes risks related to changes in U.S. Treasury yields and other key benchmarks, as well as changes in interest rates resulting from widening credit spreads and credit exposure to collateralized securities.
The fixed maturity securities portfolio, which represented 76.2%74.6% of total investments at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 at fair value, is subject to interest rate risk. The change in market interest rates is inversely related to the change in the fair value of the fixed maturity securities portfolio. A common measure of the interest sensitivity of fixed maturity securities is modified duration, a calculation that utilizes maturity, coupon rate, yield and call terms to calculate an average age to receive the present value of all the cash flows produced by such assets, including reinvestment of interest. The longer the duration, the more sensitive the asset is to market interest rate fluctuations.
The Company has historically invested in fixed maturity securities with a goal of maximizing after-tax yields and holding assets to the maturity or call date. Since assets with longer maturities tend to produce higher current yields, the Company’s historical investment philosophy resulted in a portfolio with a moderate duration. Fixed maturity securities purchased by the Company typically have call options attached, which further reduce the duration of the asset as interest rates decline. The modified duration of the overall fixed maturity securities portfolio reflecting anticipated early calls was 3.92.9 years and 3.7 3.0years at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 and December 31, 2016,2020, respectively.

If interest rates were to rise by 100 and 200 basis points, the Company estimates that the fair value of its fixed maturity
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securities portfolio at SeptemberJune 30, 20172021 would decrease by $123.1$121.8 million and $246.1$243.5 million, respectively. Conversely, if interest rates were to decrease, the fair value of the Company’s fixed maturity securities portfolio would rise, and it may cause a higher number of the Company's fixed maturity securities to be called away. The proceeds from the called bondsfixed maturity securities would likely be reinvested at lower yields, which would result in lower overall investment income for the Company.






Item 4. Controls and Procedures


Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures


The Company maintains disclosure controls and procedures designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the Company’s reports filed under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the SEC rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s management, including its Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate, to allow for timely decisions regarding required disclosure. In designing and evaluating the disclosure controls and procedures, management recognizes that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving the desired control objectives, and management necessarily was required to apply its judgment in evaluating the cost benefit relationship of possible controls and procedures.
As required by Securities and Exchange Commission Rule 13a-15(b), the Company carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of the Company’s management, including the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, of the effectiveness of the design and operation of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures as of the end of the quarter covered by this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Based on the foregoing, the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures were effective at the reasonable assurance level.
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting


There has been no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting during the Company’s most recent fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting. The Company’s process for evaluating controls and procedures is continuous and encompasses constant improvement of the design and effectiveness of established controls and procedures and the remediation of any deficiencies which may be identified during this process.


The Company has not experienced any material impact to its internal controls over financial reporting due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Company will continually monitor and assess the COVID-19 situation with respect to its internal controls to minimize the impact of the pandemic on their design and operating effectiveness.

PART II - OTHER INFORMATION
 
Item 1. Legal Proceedings


The Company is, from time to time, named as a defendant in various lawsuits or regulatory actions incidental to its insurance business. The majority of lawsuits brought against the Company relate to insurance claims that arise in the normal course of business and are reserved for through the reserving process. For a discussion of the Company’s reserving methods, see the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.2020.
The Company establishes reserves for non-insurance claims related lawsuits, regulatory actions, and other contingencies when the Company believes a loss is probable and is able to estimate its potential exposure. For loss contingencies believed to be reasonably possible, the Company also discloses the nature of the loss contingency and an estimate of the possible loss, range of loss, or a statement that such an estimate cannot be made. While actual losses may differ from the amounts recorded and the ultimate outcome of the Company's pending actions is generally not yet determinable, the Company does not believe that the ultimate resolution of currently pending legal or regulatory proceedings, either individually or in the aggregate, will have a material adverse effect on its financial condition or cash flows.
In all cases, the Company vigorously defends itself unless a reasonable settlement appears appropriate. For a discussion of legal matters, see the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.2020. See also “Overview-C. Regulatory and Legal Matters” in ItemPart I-Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
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There are no environmental proceedings arising under federal, state, or local laws or regulations to be discussed.


Item 1A. Risk Factors


The Company’s business, results of operations, and financial condition are subject to various risks. These risks are described elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and in the Company’s other filings with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, including the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016.2020. The risk factors

identified in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 20162020 have not changed in any material respect.


Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds


None.

Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities


None.


Item 4. Mine Safety DisclosureDisclosures


Not applicable.


Item 5. Other Information


None.Share Repurchases


On July 30, 2021, the Company’s Board of Directors (the “Board”) extended its authorization of the repurchase of up to $200 million of the Company’s Common Stock for an additional one-year period, which the Board originally authorized on July 31, 2020. The purchases may be made from time to time in the open market at the discretion of management at a price approved by the Board prior to the purchase. The Company may use its own funds, borrowings against a bank credit facility, and dividends received from the Insurance Companies to fund the share repurchases. The Company has not repurchased any of the Company’s Common Stock under this authorization.



























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Item 6. Exhibits
 
101.INSXBRL Instance Document.Document- the instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data File because its XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document.
101.SCHXBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document.
101.CALXBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document.
101.LABXBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document.
101.PREXBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document.
101.DEFXBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document.
104Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as Inline XBRL and contained in Exhibit 101).



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SIGNATURES


Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.
 
MERCURY GENERAL CORPORATION
Date: October 31, 2017August 3, 2021By:/s/ Gabriel Tirador
Gabriel Tirador
President and Chief Executive Officer
Date: October 31, 2017August 3, 2021By:/s/ Theodore R. Stalick
Theodore R. Stalick
Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

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