Loews was hit hard in the first quarter of this year by the effects of Hurricane Sandy on its CNA insurance group. In the second quarter, the company’s net income rose “primarily due to higher earnings at CNA and improved investment income at the parent company.” Not having to pay claims does improve the bottom line.
The company’s revenues from its stake in Diamond Offshore Drilling Inc. (NYSE: DO) fell, and so did the earnings from the offshore driller. Revenues from Boardwalk Pipeline Partners L.P. (NYSE: BWP) rose, while operating profit at the company’s HighMount Exploration & Production company were up a bit.
Loews did not offer guidance in its news release, but the consensus analysts’ estimate for the third quarter calls for EPS of $0.78. For the year, the estimates call for EPS of $3.25 on revenues of $11.7 billion. Both estimates are down sharply from their levels at the end of the first quarter.
Shares are inactive in this morning’s premarket trading, and closed down about 0.2% on Friday, at $46.05 in a 52-week range of $39.04 to $47.10. The consensus target price for the shares was $46.00 before today’s report.
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