Aviva shares climbed on Friday after the FTSE 100 insurer raised its interim dividend and reported stronger-than-expected half-year results, boosted by robust performance across its businesses and early progress from its Direct Line acquisition.

The London-based firm posted operating profit of £1.33bn for the first six months of 2026, up 24% from a year earlier and ahead of analyst expectations of around £1.25bn. Operating earnings per share rose 10% to 31.8p, while cash remittances jumped 47% to £1.5bn. [

Operating earnings per share increased 10% to 31.8p.

General insurance premiums increased 29% to just under £8.1bn, including a 42% rise in UK and Ireland premiums to £5.91bn. UK personal lines premiums almost doubled, reflecting the Direct Line acquisition and continued growth in intermediated business. Wealth net flows rose 32% to £7.6bn, with assets under management increasing 25% to £261bn.

The UK's largest insurer also raised its interim dividend by 7% to 14p per share, reaffirming confidence in future earnings growth.

CEO Amanda Blanc said: “We have now achieved six consecutive years of excellent financial performance, with much more to come. We have quickly improved Direct Line’s profitability, grown price comparison website sales, and maintained excellent levels of customer service. We are well on track to deliver all the financial benefits of the acquisition.

“We are confident that we will meet our three-year financial targets in 2028 and expect 75% of our earnings to be capital-light by that point."

Investors welcomed the update, with Aviva shares rising about 1.4% and touching a fresh 52-week high during trading.

AJ Bell head of markets Dan Coatsworth called the results a “key milestone” in Blanc’s transformation of Aviva, amid record-breaking first-half operating profit which was ahead of forecasts and in hitting its 2026 targets a year early.

“The integration of Direct Line is accelerating and, like a driver getting a clear run on the motorway, is ahead of schedule. The deal has had the desired effect of materially boosting Aviva’s exposure in general insurance," Coatsworth said. “Having cut away the dead wood, by selling off non-core businesses in Europe and Asia, Aviva is now a higher growth, more focused business not weighed down as much by heavy demands on its capital."

Aviva, which now serves 21.8 million customers in the UK and over 25 million globally, said it expects continued growth in key areas including wealth, general insurance, health and protection, and promised "more to come later in the year" on the AI front, which is "already delivering tangible benefits", from faster review times in medical underwriting to automated quality assurance in wealth. On the horizon is the launch of the company's virtual assistant as well as rolling out an AI-enabled claims agent.

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