- ** Shares of property and casualty insurance giant Travelers Companies TRV.N rise ~2.8% to $259.32

** Company trounced Wall Street estimates for second-quarter profit on Thursday, driven by stronger underwriting and higher investment returns

** TRV's adjusted EPS of $6.51 sailed past Wall Street expectations of $3.66, according to estimates compiled by LSEG

** Net written premiums, the total value of policies sold after accounting for reinsurance, rose 4% in Q2

** Travelers posted catastrophe losses of $927 million on a pre-tax basis

** Losses were moderate despite some hailstorms, making it one of the better quarters following a spell of elevated weather-related claims across the industry

** Core income surged nearly three-fold to $1.5 billion in the quarter

** Stock up ~8% YTD, including session moves

(Reporting by Manya Saini in Bengaluru)

((Manya.Saini@thomsonreuters.com))