4 Top Insurance Stocks To Buy As Irma Loses Steam

Speculations of massive destruction by Hurricane Irma had rattled the insurance industry. The storm’s impact on Florida, however, was not as devastating as expected as it has been downgraded to Category 1. Storm surges were also of a lesser magnitude than the National Hurricane Center’s initial projections.

As Irma inflicted lesser damage than feared, insurance stocks bounced back and were among the biggest gainers on the bourses. Morgan Stanley (MS - Free Report), in the meanwhile, said that the insurance industry “has strong balance sheet to weather the financial impact” of the storm and has historically performed well after such nerve-wracking events.

Needless to say, the insurance industry is already boosting business operations, implementing new technologies and investing in cybersecurity to drive growth. Thus, investing in sound insurance stocks seems prudent at the moment.

Insurance Stocks: The Biggest Gainers

Insurance stocks had been losing ground for weeks as the hurricanes dampened investors’ sentiments. Rating agency Moody’s cautioned that property and casualty insurers, reinsurers as well as alternative capital providers like the buyers of catastrophe bonds, were all likely to undergo “substantial losses” owing to the hurricanes, particularly Irma. And why not? Irma was expected to be the most powerful hurricane and had already wrecked roads and telecommunications systems in the French Caribbean island territories.

The lesser damage has been a blessing in disguise for insurance stocks. Major players like Travelers Companies Inc (TRV - Free Report) rallied 2.3% on Sep 11 and was one of the biggest drivers for the Dow Jones. Other significant players, including Progressive Corp (PGR - Free Report) and American International Group Inc (AIG - Free Report) , improved a respective 2.2% and 1.7%.

Exchange traded fund that tracks the insurance sector also moved north. The SPDR S&P Insurance ETF (KIE) and the iShares Dow Jones US Insurance Index ETF (IAK) increased 2.2% and nearly 2%, respectively. In fact, the PowerShares KBW Property & Casualty Insurance Portfolio advanced 3.1%, its highest one-day climb since July 2015. This gain helped the fund close in the positive territory for the year. The biggest gainers from the PowerShares fund were Aspen Insurance Holdings Limited (AHL - Free Report), Validus Holdings, Ltd. (VR - Free Report) and Maiden Holdings, Ltd. (MHLD - Free Report), which saw a respective rally of 9.4%, 6.9% and 7.1%