Shares of Travelers advanced on Friday after the property and casualty insurer's second-quarter earnings blew away the consensus view despite Wall Street pessimism ahead of the report.
The company posted quarterly adjusted earnings of $10.04 a share, up from $6.51 a year ago and well above Wall Street's expectation of $5.41.
Net premiums written totaled $11.53 billion, down slightly from last year and beating the analyst consensus forecast of $11.26 billion, according to FactSet.
"The scale of our earnings and cash flow enable us to invest in differentiating technology, including AI, at a level that sets us apart, further strengthening the competitive advantages that power those results," CEO Alan Schnitzer said in the earnings release.
Travelers stock rose 2.3% to $345.58 in premarket trading on Friday after closing on Thursday up 2.6%.
Shares of the insurance giant have gained about 17% this year after rising 13% last month. The stock has risen about 34% over the past 12 months, outperforming sector peers.
Morgan Stanley analyst Bob Jian Huang on Wednesday downgraded Travelers to Underweight from Equal Weight, lowering the price target to $290 from $333. The analyst noted that the stock's risk/reward "has turned negative" following its rally this year and over the past 12 months.
TD Cowen on Monday also downgraded Travelers to Sell from Hold. The firm also noted that the stock's recent rally is "at odds with deteriorating industry fundamentals."
Write to Kit Norton at kit.norton@barrons.com
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July 17, 2026 07:15 ET (11:15 GMT)
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