April 2015/3

Axis remains "fully committed" to a combination with PartnerRe that will deliver "superior and sustainable value to all shareholders", despite yesterday's (14 April) rival bid from Exor

Share price data on The Insurance Insider's universe of P&C (re)insurers

P&C stock performance improved last week as The Insider 30 traded up by 1.65 percent on average.

Insurance CIOs struggling to find capital-efficient returns for their portfolios are being approached about a tool that could provide hedge fund-like returns at a fraction of the cost.

Ongoing cost cutting in the mining and metals industry is leading to progressively lower insurable values and greater competition among insurers as the sector softens, according to Willis.

International and North American onshore liability rates could fall in 2015 as renewal pricing remains under pressure, Willis has said.

Unprecedented levels of capacity have driven average downstream energy rates to their lowest levels in 22 years, Willis said in its Natural Resources Market Review.

Capacity in the upstream energy market has risen by 75 percent over the last five years, according to a Willis report that warned that such oversupply could leave carriers in a "sink or swim" situation in 2015.

While the outlook for commercial insurance stocks may be gloomy amid forecasts of deteriorating returns on equity, homeowners' business continues to offer potential for carriers to drive margin improvements, according to Bernstein analysts.

Commercial P&C stocks are trading at a premium to book value that is "unwarranted" based on an outlook for deteriorating returns on equity (RoEs), according to JP Morgan's Sarah DeWitt.

With the P&C sector in the grip of M&A fever, the upcoming first quarter earnings season might appear to some to have been relegated to little more than a sideshow.

PartnerRe should consider paying a $7.50 a share special dividend to its existing shareholders at the close of the proposed merger with Axis, said BMO Capital Markets analyst Charles Sebaski.