(Bloomberg) — XL Group Plc, jumped the most since January aftersecond-quarter profit beat analysts' estimates as marginsimproved.
|The insurer rose 2.9% to $33.98 at 10:11 a.m. in New York, thelargest gain in the 84-company Standard & Poor's 500 FinancialsIndex.
|Operating income, which excludes a loss tied to the sale of abusiness, was $1.02 a share, beating the 86-cent average estimateof analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. The insurer made an underwritingprofit of 11.7 cents of profit on every premium dollar it collectedin the quarter, compared with 6.2 cents a year earlier, theDublin-based insurer said late yesterday in a statement.
|“XL's improved underwriting capabilities, reflecting bothupgraded talent and improved technology,” are helping results,Meyer Shields, an analyst with Keefe Bruyette & Woods, said ina note to investors yesterday. “Looking forward, XL's earningsshould become even less volatile.”
|Chief Executive Officer Mike McGavick last month completed thesale of the reinsurance business to GreyCastle Holdings Ltd. for$570 million as part of his plan to simplify XL and free up capitalfor share buybacks.
|XL reported a net loss in the second quarter of $279.3 million,or $1.03 a share, tied to the sale of a life reinsurance unit. Thatcompares with net income of $272.7 million, or 93 cents, in thesame period last year.
|Copyright 2018 Bloomberg. All rightsreserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten,or redistributed.
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