Erie Indemnity Reports First Quarter 2020 Results ERIE, Pa. , May 7, 2020 |PRNewswire| -- Erie Indemnity Company (NASDAQ: ERIE ) today announced financial results for the quarter ending March 31, 2020. Net income was $59.3 million , or $1.13 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2020, compared to $75.3 million , or $1.44 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2019. On March 11, 2020 , the outbreak of the coronavirus ("COVID-19") was declared a global pandemic. The impacts of the pandemic and efforts to mitigate the spread of the virus have had significant adverse impacts on economic conditions and financial markets. We did not experience significant financial impacts on our core businesses of policy issuance and renewal services and administrative services in the first quarter of 2020. However, the financial market volatility did have a significant impact on our first quarter 2020 investment portfolio. 1Q 2020 (in thousands) 1Q'20 1Q'19 Operating income $ 85,691 $ 86,122 Investment (loss) income (9,195) 9,795 Interest expense and other income, net 369 402 Income before income taxes 76,127 95,515 Income tax expense 16,801 20,204 Net income $ 59,326 $ 75,311 1Q 2020 Highlights Operating income before taxes decreased $0.4 million , or 0.5 percent, in the first quarter of 2020 compared to the first quarter of 2019.