Safeco Raises Premiums In Shadow of Poor Q3 Performance

Struggling insurer Safeco will raise premiums in an effort to right itself and its balance sheet after another quarter of disappointing earnings. Safeco reported a profit of $12.2 million, or 10 cents a share, from its insurance operations for the third quarter compared with $9.8 million, or 7 cents a share, in operating profit for the same period last year.

Wall Street expectations put operating profits closer to 25 or 30 cents a share. Safeco has been aggressively raising rates and purging books of unprofitable customers, and is expected to increase those efforts over the next few quarters.