Berkley reports 12.4% decrease in Q3 net income
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W.R. Berkley Corp. on Monday reported net income of $228.8 million for the third quarter, a 12.4% decrease from the year-earlier period.
The Greenwich, Connecticut-based insurer said after the markets closed that net premiums written in the quarter increased 10.8%, to $2.58 billion.
The combined ratio for the quarter was 92.1%, compared with 90.4% in last year’s third quarter.
“The main driver in the quarter was Hurricane Ian,” said Richard Baio, executive vice president and chief financial officer, in a call with analysts.
Rob Berkley, president and CEO, said during the call, “The marketplace overall remains a very interesting one from our perspective. There are pockets of the market that remain extremely attractive” and others where the level of competition is surprising.
While “the market is still as cyclical as ever,” different product lines “are marching to the beat of their own drum, which translates into different points in the cycle at any point in time” although the excess and surplus lines space “remains very attractive.”
He said the company was considering becoming more active in the property catastrophe reinsurance market, but only if rates continue to increase to a high enough level, and that this is unlikely to be for more than a year or two.
“We are paying close attention” to the market “not just as a buyer, but potentially as meaningful seller, but only if the earnings are adequate,” he said. “We are not shy to lean into it if we think it makes sense” from a risk-adjusted basis perspective, he said.
