Axa Posts 2nd-Half Profit on Life-Insurance Business

February 18, 2010, 06:32 AM EST

By Fabio Benedetti-Valentini

Feb. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Axa SA, Europe’s 2nd biggest insurer, posted a 2nd half profit after a rally in financial markets support demand for policies linked to stock performance.

Net income reached 2.28 billion euros or $3.1 billion from a 1.24 billion-euro loss the year , according to the numbers on the Paris-based company’s Web site today. That surpassed the 1.62 billion-euro estimate of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg.

Axa, like the U.S.’s biggest insurer, MetLife Inc., returned to profit after equity markets recuperate following the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. Chief Executive Officer Henri de Castries, is depending on the company’s life and savings division, whose profit exceeded analysts’ estimates in the quarter, to recapture growth.

“The outcome demonstrates that Axa’s life-dominated business model positions the group well in an economic recovery,” said Ralph Hebgen, an analyst at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Ltd., in a remark to investors. He has an “outperform” stock rating.

Axa rose 0.5% to 15.64 euros in Paris trading at 12:22 p.m.. It has gained 43% in the last 12 months, giving the insurer a market price of 35.7 billion euros. The 29-member Bloomberg Europe 500 Insurance Index has climbed 39%.

VIA BusinessWeek

Keyword: life insurance

Articles from February 2010
More articles from Year 2010

Comments (0)