CNA posts $368 million second-quarter profit

CNA Financial Corp. Monday reported second-quarter net income of $368.0 million, more than double the $151 million in the prior-year quarter, as catastrophe losses plummeted.

The insurer achieved its strong results despite a “sophisticated cybersecurity incident in late March which impacted transactional capabilities,” Dino E. Robusto, chairman and CEO of CNA, said during an earnings call Monday with analysts.

Net written premiums in CNA’s property/casualty operations declined 1% to $1.909 billion, including a reduction of $122 million related to a one-time reinsurance transaction.

Net earned premiums grew 10% to $2.035 billion

CNA’s property/casualty combined ratio improved 15.2 points to 94.0% as net catastrophe losses dropped to $54 million from $301 million in the second quarter of 2020, which included $182 million related to COVID-19 and $61 million related to civil unrest.

Net investment income grew 10.7% to $591 million, driven by income from limited partnerships and common stock.

New business grew 10% to $393 million and CNA achieved a 10% rate increase for the second quarter, off from 11% in the first quarter, Mr. Robusto said. It was the fifth consecutive quarter of double-digit rate increases.

Professional liability was up 23%, umbrella up 16%, financial and management liability up 17%, auto up 13%, and property up 11%, Mr. Robusto said.

The “limited transactional capabilities” caused by the cyber incident, which began March 21, “slowed down production in the early part of the quarter,” Mr. Robusto said. The impact was primarily in the commercial middle-market space because underwriters are based in branch offices to focus on local agent and broker relationships, he said.