ProCentury Sees $13.7 Million Profit in 2004
Columbus, Ohio-based specialty property/casualty insurance holding company ProCentury Corp. reported income from continuing operations of $13.7 million for 2004, or $1.29 per diluted share. The company also reported a combined ratio of 91.8 percent for 2004 and book value per share of $8.76 as of Dec. 31, 2004.
“We produced solid earnings for our shareholders in 2004,” ProCentury CEO Edward F. Feighan said in a statement. “This achievement is the result of our disciplined underwriting and a concerted effort to strengthen our distribution network. We have momentum going into 2005; we have some excellent opportunities in the markets we serve, and we are well-positioned to continue profitable growth.”
The company’s profit margin represented an improvement from the loss from continuing operations of $1.2 million reported for 2003. Net income from continuing operations per diluted share in 2004 was $1.29 compared with a net loss of 25 cents per diluted share. The combined ratio, meanwhile, improved from 109 percent for 2003. The improvement was generated by a decline in the loss ratio from 74.8 percent in 2003 to 59.9 percent in 2004 and a decline in the expense ratio from 34.2 percent in 2003 to 31.9 percent in 2004.