RLI Corp. (RLI) recently increased its fourth quarter cash dividend by 4% from the prior quarter level to 28 cents per common share. The dividend is payable on Jan 15, 2010, to shareholders of record on Dec 31, 2009.

This is the not the first time that the company has increased its dividend in 2009. The second quarter dividend, which was announced in May this year, also represented an increase of around 4% over the previous quarter. The company has paid dividends for 134 consecutive quarters and has increased dividends in each of the last 34 years.

RLI is one of the industry’s most profitable property and casualty (P&C) writers, having generated underwriting profits in 28 of the last 32 years Incorporatedluding the last 13 consecutive years. This is a positive contrast to the industry, which on the whole reported underwriting profits in only two years (1977 and 1978).

RLI’s third-quarter earnings of $1.18 per share was substantially ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate, driven primarily by increased underwriting income. Also, the results benefited from favorable reserve releases from prior-year periods. However, premium writings remain curtailed, reflecting the continued soft environment in the Casualty segment.

The company maintains a conservative underwriting and reserving policy and continues to achieve favorable reserve releases from the prior years. Its statutory surplus levels are strong and exhibit an upward trend. As of Sept 30, 2009, RLI’s statutory surplus totaled $750.5 million, representing increases of 7.5% from the prior quarter level and 10.7% year to date.

RLI has a low financial leverage and has also reinstated its share repurchase program, which was suspended in the third quarter of 2008. As of Sept 30, 2009, the company had total assets of $2.6 billion, shareholders’ equity of $826.9 million and long-term debt of $100 million.

Going forward, we expect the company’s underwriting discipline to bode well as the market stabilizes under restrictive premium growth in the near term. As such we have a Neutral recommendation on the shares.

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