Berkshire Hathaway releases financial results
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Berkshire Hathaway Inc.'s insurance operations' net underwriting gains shrank 14.4% during the second quarter to $530 million, the Omaha, Neb.-based conglomerate reported Friday.
Net income for Berkshire, however, surged 46.1% in the second quarter to $4.54 billion, driven largely by favorable investment results. For the first six months of the year, net income rose 48.5% to $9.43 billion.
Pre-tax underwriting gains for Berkshire's General Reinsurance Corp. dropped 98.3% to $24 million for the quarter and 45.7% to $119 million for the first six months of the year. Berkshire's Hathaway's Reinsurance Group also suffered a decline, falling 36.2% to $391 million in the first quarter but increasing 223.5% to $1.37 billion for the first six months of the year. Both units reported investment income increases.
“The timing and amount of catastrophe losses can also produce significant volatility in our periodic underwriting results, particularly with respect to BHRG and General Re,” in its earnings report. “In the second quarter of 2013, we incurred pre-tax losses of $189 million related to floods in Europe. In the first six months of 2012, losses from catastrophes were not significant.”
The company's second quarter results included $365 million in underwriting gains from its personal lines Government Employees Insurance Company, or GEICO, operation.
The company reported $622 million in investment and derivative income for the second quarter of the year, compared with a $612 million loss for the same period in 2012. For the first six months of the year, Berkshire Hathaway reported $1.73 billion in investment and derivative income, compared to a $32 million loss for the same period of 2012.
