Insurance and reinsurance firm Validus yesterday reported $173.4 million in profits for the first quarter of the year.

That is equivalent to $1.98 per share, compared to $162.4 million, or $1.66 per share, for the first three months of 2014.

Validus chairman and CEO Ed Noonan said: “I am very pleased with the company’s strong performance during the first quarter of 2015.

“Validus earned $173.4 million in net income, equal to a 19.1 per cent annualised return on average equity and had 4.9 per cent growth in book value per diluted common share inclusive of dividends.”

He added: “As an underwriting company first and foremost, I applaud our underwriters for having the discipline to reduce exposure where the pricing was insufficient for the risk.

“Validus’ goal is to remain a preferred partner for our customers and intermediaries over the long haul and that starts with maintaining the integrity of our underwriting in challenging market conditions — that’s what disciplined underwriting companies do.”

The firm’s net operating income for the quarter amounted to $132.8 million ($1.52 per share), compared to $140.3 million ($1.43 per share) for the same three months of last year.

Gross premiums written for the first three months of 2015 were $1,119.5 million, compared to $1,012 million for the same time the year before — an increase of $107.5 million (10.6 per cent).

Net premiums for the quarter were up $94.8 million (19.6 per cent) to $577.8 million compared to the same period of 2014.

Underwriting income decreased in the 2015 first quarter by $8.9 million (5.8 per cent) to $144.1 million. The firm’s underwriting income in the first three months of 2014 was $153 million.

Validus includes operating segments Talbot, PaCRe, AlphaCat companies and Western World.