Exhibit 99
October 23, 1995 - THE ST. PAUL COMPANIES REPORTS RECORD
NINE-MONTHS OPERATING EARNINGS
St. Paul, Minn. - The St. Paul Companies (NYSE:SPC) reported
record operating earnings of $340.3 million, or $3.72 per
share, for the first nine months of 1995, compared with
$287.3 million, or $3.20 per share, for the same period of
1994.
Net income for the first nine months of 1995 was $366.0
million, or $4.00 per share, compared with $322.0 million,
or $3.59 per share, for nine-months 1994. Net income for the
first nine months of 1995 included after-tax realized
investment gains of $25.7 million, or $0.28 per share,
compared with gains of $34.7 million, or $0.39 per share,
for nine-months 1994.
Common shareholders' equity was $3.5 billion at Sept.
30, a new high and more than $750 million higher than year-
end 1994.
"Nine-months operating earnings in 1995 were our
highest ever, despite pretax catastrophe losses of $99
million, the second-worst nine-months total in our history.
Strong underwriting results, coupled with effective expense
controls, carried the day, however," said Douglas W.
Leatherdale, chairman and chief executive officer.
"1995 catastrophes have cost the U.S. property-liability
insurance industry close to $6 billion through the end of
September -- not including Hurricane Opal, which occurred in
October.
"Hurricane Opal, the strongest storm this season, is
expected to produce fourth-quarter pretax losses ranging
from $25 million to $30 million for The St. Paul Companies
and over $2 billion for the U.S. property-liability
insurance industry," Leatherdale added.
Third-quarter Results
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For the third quarter of 1995, operating earnings were
$125.1 million, or $1.35 per share, compared with last
year's third-quarter operating earnings of $120.5 million,
or $1.35 per share. 1995's quarterly per-share figure
reflected The St. Paul's issuance earlier this year of
convertible monthly income preferred securities.
Net income for third-quarter 1995 was $142.4 million,
or $1.54 per share, compared with net income of $129.8
million, or $1.45 per share, for the third quarter of 1994.
Third-quarter 1995 net income included after-tax realized
investment gains of $17.3 million, or $0.19 per share,
compared with gains of $9.3 million, or $0.10 per share, in
the same period of 1994.
"We had a solid quarter in terms of both growth and
profits," Leatherdale said. "Revenues, at $1.4 billion,
were up 14%, and operating earnings increased 4 percent over
last year."
Underwriting Operations
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"The combination of a 15 percent increase in earned
premiums, pretax investment income growth of 9 percent, and
an expense ratio of 28.5 produced a very good quarter for
our underwriting operations," Leatherdale said.
"Underwriting results were good throughout the
organization. I'm particularly pleased with the third-
quarter performance of our International Underwriting
operation, which improved its results significantly from
past quarters."
THE ST. PAUL COMPANIES
THIRD-QUARTER UNDERWRITING OPERATIONS
HIGHLIGHTS
Three months ended Sept. 30 1995 1994
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Written premiums $1,157,628,000 $1,008,816,000
Underwriting loss ($25,334,000) ($20,065,000)
Net investment income $183,845,000 $169,383,000
Pretax operating earnings* $147,666,000 $146,961,000
Statutory combined ratio 100.4 99.9
*excluding realized investment gains
THE ST. PAUL COMPANIES
NINE-MONTHS UNDERWRITING OPERATIONS
HIGHLIGHTS
Nine months ended Sept. 30 1995 1994
- -------------------------- ---- ----
Written premiums $3,169,117,000 $2,734,506,000
Underwriting loss ($66,461,000) ($116,666,000)
Net investment income $543,073,000 $498,369,000
Pretax operating earnings* $443,591,000 $361,838,000
Combined ratio 101.3 103.4
*excluding realized investment gains
Insurance Brokerage Operations
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For the third quarter of 1995, The Minet Group, The St.
Paul's London-based insurance brokerage operation, had
pretax income of $4.6 million, compared with pretax income
of $2.5 million for the third quarter of 1994.
For the first nine months of 1995, Minet had a pretax
loss of $13.7 million, compared with a pretax loss of $11.2
million for the first nine months of 1994.
"Minet's profits edged up in the third quarter, but
brokerage fees and commissions remained flat, reflecting the
competitive marketplace," Leatherdale said.
The John Nuveen Company
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The St. Paul's portion of The John Nuveen Company's
third-quarter 1995 pretax operating earnings totaled $22.2
million, compared with pretax operating earnings of $19.0
million for the same period in 1994. The St. Paul owns 77
percent of Nuveen.
For nine-months 1995, The St. Paul's portion of
Nuveen's pretax operating earnings was $61.1 million,
compared with $54.1 million for the first nine months of
1994.
Consolidated Financial Position
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Consolidated assets of The St. Paul Companies as of
Sept. 30, 1995, were $18.8 billion, compared with $17.5
billion as of Dec. 31, 1994.
Book value per common share as of Sept. 30, 1995, was
$41.16, compared with $32.46 on Dec. 31, 1994.
The St. Paul Companies, headquartered in Saint Paul,
Minn. is a group of companies that provides property-
liability insurance underwriting and insurance brokerage
products and services throughout the world.
THE ST. PAUL COMPANIES
THIRD-QUARTER RESULTS
1995 1994
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Revenues $1,364,866,000 $1,199,068,000
Operating Earnings $125,100,000 $120,488,000
Per Common Share (Fully Diluted) $1.35 $1.35
Realized Investment Gains,
Net of Taxes $17,299,000 $9,320,000
Per Common Share (Fully Diluted) $0.19 $0.10
Net Income $142,399,000 $129,808,000
Per Common Share (Fully Diluted) $1.54 $1.45
THE ST. PAUL COMPANIES
NINE-MONTHS RESULTS
1995 1994
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Revenues $3,963,053,000 $3,527,992,000
Operating Earnings $340,273,000 $287,339,000
Per Common Share (Fully Diluted) $3.72 $3.20
Realized Investment Gains,
Net of Taxes $25,689,000 $34,668,000
Per Common Share (Fully Diluted) $0.28 $0.39
Net Income $365,962,000 $322,007,000
Per Common Share (Fully Diluted) $4.00 $3.59