XL beats even as cats rise and reserve releases drop

XL Group's fourth quarter operating profit dropped almost 10
percent to $116.1mn as it took a $315.2mn hit from previously
announced catastrophe losses, driven by California wildfires.
But at $0.45 a share, the performance surpassed the $0.38 per
share expected by Wall Street, based on the average of 15
analysts' estimates compiled by MarketWatch.
The pre-tax net cat losses for the quarter were higher than the
$246.1mn reported in the prior-year period and took XL's total
for 2018 to $2.0bn,...