Travelers Fares Well on First Day of IPO
Travelers Property Casualty Corp. made a solid debut on the trading floor of the New York Stock Exchange Friday, March 22, as shares were traded at $19.54, an increase of 5.6 percent from their initial offering price, according to the Associated Press.
Travelers initially priced 210 million shares at $18.50 a share on March 21, raising $3.88 billion in its IPO.
The Travelers IPO is the fourth largest IPO in history, and the largest ever for the insurance industry.
Reported net income for 2001 was a low $1.06 billion, a loss of 19 percent from the previous year. Travelers attributed the loss partly to the Sept. 11 attacks, claiming losses of $490 million.
Other losses stemmed from costly asbestos litigation, with $820 million in reserve for pending claims, yet an uncertain future for the resolution of future claims. Citigroup has agreed to pay up to $800 million in asbestos-related costs if Travelers exceeds costs of more than $150 million in claims.