CNA's Third-Quarter 2026 Core Income Falls to $203 Million

The Tip Desk · November 2, 2026 · 3 min read

Third-quarter 2026 P&C net written premiums rose 3% to $2.51 billion, while core income fell to $203 million, or $0.75 a share, as a $137 million after-tax long-term care reserve update and higher catastrophe losses cut profit.

CNA Financial Corporation (CNA) reported third-quarter 2026 net income of $196 million, or $0.72 a share, down from $403 million, or $1.48 a share, a year earlier. Core income was $203 million, or $0.75 a share, versus $409 million, or $1.50 a share. P&C net written premiums rose 3% to $2.51 billion. Annual long-term care reserve assumption updates unfavorably affected core income by $137 million after tax.

The Life & Group segment produced a core loss of $171 million, compared with a $22 million core loss in the year-ago quarter. The company said the annual long-term care reserve assumption updates unfavorably impacted core loss by $137 million after tax, primarily from cost-of-care inflation and morbidity assumptions, partly offset by favorable premium-rate outperformance. The company said those unfavorable expected cash flows are almost entirely offset by a favorable economic impact from recent investment portfolio actions, a benefit not reflected in current-period GAAP earnings.

Property & Casualty core income was $397 million, down from $456 million a year earlier, which the company attributed to lower underlying underwriting results and higher catastrophe losses. The P&C combined ratio was 97.0%, including 2.8 points of catastrophe impact. Catastrophe losses were $78 million pretax. There was no net prior-period development impact in the current or prior-year quarters.

The underlying combined ratio was 94.2%, with an underlying loss ratio of 64.1% and an expense ratio of 29.7%. The company said both ratios were consistent with the first half of 2026.

P&C net written premiums were $2.51 billion, up 3% from a year earlier. Renewal premium change was +3% and written rate was +2%. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Douglas M. Worman said retention was 83% and new business grew modestly. He said the company is walking away from parts of the portfolio where market conditions do not support appropriate pricing, terms and conditions, and that it will selectively deploy capacity where risk-adjusted returns are attractive while stepping back where they are not.

Specialty net written premiums were $900 million, up 4%. The segment’s underlying combined ratio was 96.7% and underwriting gain was $30 million. Commercial net written premiums were $1.27 billion, up 2%. Commercial’s combined ratio was 99.7% and underlying combined ratio 92.5%, with a $3 million underwriting gain; catastrophe losses in Commercial were $70 million, or 4.8 points, and unfavorable net prior-period development added 2.4 points to the loss ratio. International net written premiums were $333 million, up 4% (6% excluding currency). International’s combined ratio was 86.1% and underlying combined ratio 94.1%, with a $49 million underwriting gain; favorable net prior-period development improved the loss ratio by 10.1 points.

Net investment income was $635 million. Fixed income securities and other contributed $587 million; limited partnership and common stock income was $48 million. The company said the year-over-year decrease was driven by lower limited partnership returns, partly offset by higher fixed-income income from a larger invested asset base and favorable reinvestment rates.

Corporate & Other reported a core loss of $23 million, versus $25 million a year earlier. Stockholders’ equity was $10.2 billion. Book value per share was $37.80, and book value excluding AOCI was $46.11, a 5% increase from year-end 2025 after $3.44 of dividends per share. Preliminary statutory capital and surplus for the Combined Continental Casualty Companies was $11.2 billion as of September 30, 2026. The board declared a quarterly cash dividend of $0.48 a share, payable December 3, 2026.