Travelers Posts Lower Q1 Profit, Sales Miss Estimates

reported a drop in its first-quarter profit. The company's sales also missed analysts' views. The company's board lifted its quarterly dividend by 11 percent to $0.61 per share, and authorized an additional $5.0 billion of share repurchases. The New York-based company posted quarterly net earnings of $833 million, or $2.55 per share, compared to $1.05 billion, or $2.95 per share, in the year-ago period. Its operating earnings declined to $2.53 per share from $2.95 per share. Its revenue declined 1 percent to $6.63 billion, while net premiums written came in flat at $5.9 billion. However, analysts were expecting earnings of $2.54 per share on revenue of $6.78 billion. During the quarter, Travelers repurchased 6.3 million shares for a total cost of $672 million. Travelers shares fell 2 percent to $104.02 in pre-market trading.