NEW YORK (AP) — Insurance conglomerate Allstate said Wednesday that its third-quarter earnings fell 57 percent from a year ago, as the company recorded a loss on the pending sale of its life insurance business.
DETAILS: Allstate had a $475 million after-tax loss tied to the expected sale of its Lincoln Benefit Life Co. division. It agreed to sell the business in July for $600 million. That got it out of the independent life insurance and annuity business.
But Esurance, Allstate's direct-to-consumer auto insurance business, continues to grow rapidly. The company said policies rose 32 percent and premiums written increased 27 percent.
NUMBERS: Net income was $310 million, or 66 cents per share. That is down from $723 million, or $1.48 per share, in the same period a year ago.
Allstate's operating profit, which excludes the one-time loss of Lincoln and some other investment-related losses, was $1.53 per share, up from $1.46 per share. Revenue rose 4 percent, to $8.47 billion from $8.13 billion.
Analysts polled by FactSet expected Allstate to earn $1.40 per share.
STOCK: Shares of Allstate were down 96 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $52.00 in aftermarket trading. The stock is up 32 percent so far this year, however.
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