Bermuda-based Assured Guaranty Ltd has reported net income of $17 million for the third quarter.

That figure includes a $175 million pre-tax ($138 million after-tax) loss on debt extinguishment resulting from the voluntary early redemption of certain senior notes.

Shareholders’ equity attributable to Assured Guaranty Ltd per share was $88.42 as of September 30, the highest ever reported.

Adjusted operating income was $34 million, or $0.45 per share.

Adjusted operating shareholders’ equity per share and adjusted book value per share reached record highs of $82.89 and $122.50, respectively, as of September 30, the company said.

Third quarter capital returned to shareholders was $156 million, including the repurchase of 2.9 million shares for $140 million, and dividends of $16 million.

Insurance segment adjusted operating income was $214 million for the quarter. Gross written premiums were $106 million, and present value of new business production (PVP) was $96 million.

The company’s asset management segment adjusted operating loss was $7 million for the quarter. Gross inflows were $916 million.

Dominic Frederico, president and chief executive officer of Assured Guaranty, said: “The trend towards greater use of bond insurance continued in the third quarter, pushing insurance penetration of the municipal bond market to the highest levels in a decade for both a third quarter and any nine-month period.

“Assured Guaranty continued to lead the municipal bond insurance industry with a third-quarter market share of almost two-thirds of primary-market insured par sold.

“Global public finance production combined with solid structured finance results to produce $96 million of PVP, a very strong result for a third quarter that, in the last decade, is second only to the third quarter of 2020. At quarter-end, all of our per-share measures of shareholder value stood at new highs.”

Regarding corporate capital structure, he added: “In August, following our successful May issuance of $500 million of 3.15 per cent 10-year senior debt, we issued $400 million of 3.6 per cent 30-year senior notes. Part of the combined proceeds were used to redeem $600 million of higher coupon outstanding debt at significant debt service savings.”

Assured is a publicly traded Bermuda-based holding company. Through its subsidiaries, it provides credit enhancement products to the US and international public finance, infrastructure and structured finance markets and also provides asset management services.