Harleysville: Earnings to be Lower than Expected

Harleysville Group Inc. (Nasdaq: HGIC) announced yesterday that it expects 2003 first quarter diluted operating earnings to be lower that prior analyst expectations, in the range of $0.22 to $0.26 per share. For the comparable period in 2002, the company reported diluted operating earnings of $0.43 per share. Diluted operating earnings per share exclude the impact of net realized after-tax investment gains and losses that are included in net income. Property catastrophe losses resulting from the first quarter's winter storms were capped at $3.6 million pretax, or $0.08 per share, by the quar...