Home insurtech Kin Insurance reported stronger profitability in Q1 2026, helped by a larger renewal book and disciplined underwriting across its reciprocal exchanges. Total revenue for the three months ended March 31 rose 20% year-on-year to $56.6 mn from $47.0 mn.
Gross written premium increased 20% to $177.6 mn. Premium in force, a forward-looking revenue measure, grew 26% to $666.8 mn.
Gross profit margin held at 94%. Operating income almost doubled to $4.5 mn from $2.3 mn, lifting operating margin to 8% from 5%.
Baseline operating income, which excludes growth spending, rose 37% to $20.2 mn. That equalled a 50% baseline operating margin, compared with 42% a year earlier.
The company said the results reflect a larger earnings contribution from renewals. Renewal written premium reached $126.0 mn, up from $100.5 mn a year earlier.
Renewal revenue rose to $40.8 mn from $31.9 mn. That shift matters for Kin’s model because renewal business carries lower acquisition pressure than new policy growth.
Founder and CEO Sean Harper said Q1 showed a more stable insurance and reinsurance environment after disruption from 2022 through 2024. With rates largely reset, he said fewer policyholders are shopping, which raises acquisition costs for direct insurers.
Harper said Kin spent about $30 mn on growth expenses during the quarter. The company acquired about $16 mn of new annual recurring revenue.
Based on Kin’s figures, that implies a payback period of roughly one year if customers renew at the first anniversary. Net churn on that annual recurring revenue was about 10%.
New written premium reached $51.6 mn in the quarter. That compared with $47.8 mn in Q1 2025.
Growth operating income, which includes growth spending, was negative $15.8 mn. The result reflects planned investment in new business rather than weakness in the renewal book.
Management said rising baseline operating income gives Kin room to fund growth internally. The company also expects margins to improve over time as the renewal base expands.
Kin’s model focuses on managing technology-enabled reciprocal exchanges for homeowners in catastrophe-exposed states. The exchanges use reinsurance and catastrophe bonds to manage storm risk.
Chief insurance officer Angel Conlin said Kin’s technology continues to produce market-beating results for the exchanges. She pointed to loss ratios staying ahead of target and pricing on a recent catastrophe bond clearing about 300 basis points tighter than the broader market.
Conlin said non-catastrophe adjusted loss ratios were consistent with the prior year. Winter storms affected the quarter, but total loss ratios at both reciprocals remained within Kin’s target range.
Kin recently upsized its Hestia Re 2026-1 catastrophe bond to $335 mn from an initial $300 mn target. The transaction secured tighter spreads and extended storm protection beyond Florida.
The deal was issued into an active insurance-linked securities market. It adds to Kin’s reinsurance and capital markets protection before the 2026 hurricane season.
Chief financial officer Jerry Fadden said the 50% baseline operating margin shows the effect of operating leverage. Earned premium is growing over a cost base that remains largely fixed.
General and administrative expenses were $18.3 mn. That was only modestly above the $17.0 mn recorded a year earlier.
Fadden said Kin’s infrastructure depends on software and AI investments, so general and administrative costs are mostly fixed. He said increases in baseline expenses or G&A mainly reflect spending on technology and data capabilities.
Growth expenses were $30.7 mn and G&A was $18.3 mn. Total operating costs outside claims reached $49.0 mn, compared with gross profit of $53.4 mn.
