W.R. Berkley Posts Record Q3 Net Income

Third quarter 2024 net income at W.R. Berkley Corp. increased to about $365.6 million compared to $333.6 million the same period the prior year on underwriting and investments.

Net income was a record for the third quarter, the company said.

The Greenwich, Connecticut-based commercial insurer recorded net premiums written of about $3.1 billion, up about 7.3% from the prior year third quarter. The company said average rate increases excluding workers’ compensation were approximately 8.4%.

Net investment income grew 19.5% to $323.8 million compared to Q3 2023.

W.R. Berkley’s consolidated combined ratio for Q3 was 90.9 compared to 90.2 a year ago. The insurance segment turned in a combined ratio of 91.5 while reinsurance & monoline excess had a combined ratio of 86.7.

Catastrophe losses for the quarter in the insurance segment were up about 66.5% to $76.8 million. The reinsurance & monoline excess business has catastrophe losses of nearly $21 million compared to $15.4 million during the same period a year ago.

“We continue to grow thoughtfully by focusing on business we expect to achieve or exceed our targeted risk-adjusted return, being ever mindful of rate adequacy, loss trend, and exposure management. Our 90.9 calendar year combined ratio again demonstrated below average volatility, with a modest 3.3 loss ratio points of catastrophe losses, despite the frequency of severe market-wide events,” W.R. Berkley said in a statement.