Excluding net realized investment gains and losses, Ace said it made $688 million, or $2.01 a share, in the latest period. Ace was expected to make $1.84 a share, according to the average estimate of 20 analysts in a FactSet survey. Ace nudged up a profit forecast from January. The insurer expects full-year operating profit of $6.25 a share to $6.75 a share, but results may be at the top end of that range, it said.
"Slow economic recovery in the major developed economies of the United States, Europe and Japan and competitive global insurance markets impacted total premium growth, and I expect these conditions will be with us for some time," Ace Chief Executive Evan Greenberg said in a statement. "However, we continue to identify and realize opportunities for profitable growth as a result of our on-the-ground local presence globally and a broad specialty-oriented product capability."