Chubb Beats Q1 Earnings Expectations

U.S. business insurer Chubb Corporation yesterday posted a 5.7% Q1 earnings gain as investment income grew 9%. Net income was up to $710 million ($1.71/share) from $672 million ($1.58) in the year-ago period. Operating earnings, which exclude investment gains and losses, were $634 million ($1.53/share), up from $603 million ($1.42) last year and well ahead of Street expectations of $1.38. Net written premiums for Q1 were down 2% to $2.9 billion and the combined ratio, a gauge of underwriting profitability, was 83.4%. The company declined to revise guidance, but CEO John Finnegan did say that "Chubb's outstanding first-quarter results obviously put us on the path to achieving or exceeding our January 30, 2007 operating income per share guidance of $5.00-5.40 for the year." The company's shares were up $0.23 in AH trading to $53.99.

Sources: Press release, MarketWatch, TheStreet.com, Reuters, Bloomberg
Commentary: The Right Moment to Buy Chubb? • Where's the Money Flowing in Financial Stocks?
Stocks/ETFs to watch: The Chubb Corporation (CB). Competitors: American International Group, Inc. (AIG), Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. (HIG), The Travelers Companies, Inc. (TRV). ETFs: KBW Insurance ETF (KIE), iShares Dow Jones US Insurance (IAK), PowerShares Dynamic Insurance (PIC)

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