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Insurance companies are buying back their own stock in hordes. Maybe they shouldn't

Cnbc · 🇺🇸 public United States · · 445 words · By Contessa Brewer
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What to know about Insurance companies are buying back their own stock in hordes. Maybe they shouldn't

On May 21, following its annual meeting Chubb announced that its board authorized a new $7.5 billion share repurchase program.

Claims checked 10
Techniques found 0
Topics 0

Coverage spectrum

Coverage gap: Low Left coverage
Left0%
Center75%
Right25%

4 sources compared across this story cluster. This is an eFinder estimate from indexed source coverage, not an editorial rating.

What happened

On May 21, following its annual meeting Chubb announced that its board authorized a new $7.5 billion share repurchase program.

Why it matters

In January, Travelers authorized a $5 billion share buyback, bringing its share repurchase capacity to $7 billion.

Common ground

Berkley are also embarking on a program to purchase their own shares.

Perspective signals

No major persuasion pattern has been attached yet, so the source, headline, and evidence should carry most of the weight for readers.

open_in_new Read the original article: https://www.cnbc.com/2026/05/27/insurance-companies-are-buying-back-their-own-st…

fact_checkClaims Checked

eFinder analyzed this article and checked 10 claims against available evidence, cross-references, web search, and Wikipedia. Here is what the fact-checking layer found.

info Single Source 4
help Insufficient Evidence 2
verified Verified By Reference 2
check_circle Corroborated 1
verified Verified 1
info
Claim 1: “In a research note published May 26, analyst Joshua Shanker and his team acknowledged the strategy worked 20 years ago”
SINGLE SOURCE
Web search results confirm Joshua Shanker is an analyst at Bank of America and that he discussed historical periods (1997-2001) in a presentation on February 11, 2026. However, there is no specific evidence of a research note published on May 26 stating the strategy 'worked 20 years ago'.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — African Americans and Jewish Americans have interacted throughout much of the history of the United States. This relationship has included widely publicized cooperation and conflict, and it has been a…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/African_American–Jewish_relati…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician, businessman, and former United States Air Force officer who was the 43rd president of the United States, serving from 2001 to 2009. Th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_W._Bush
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American retired politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party, he represente…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joe_Biden
+ 3 more evidence sources
help
Claim 2: “In Chubb's third quarter 2025 earnings call, CEO Evan Greenberg said the company increased share buybacks”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found regarding a Q3 2025 earnings call for Chubb or statements by Evan Greenberg regarding increased buybacks.
info
Claim 3: “Chubb, Hartford and W.R. Berkley are all trading at book values well above their 10-year averages.”
SINGLE SOURCE
Evidence confirms W.R. Berkley is trading at a premium valuation (2.3x to 2.49x book value), which is above the industry average. However, there is no comparative data provided for Chubb or The Hartford's 10-year average book values to corroborate the claim for all three.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The S&P 500 is a stock market index maintained by S&P Dow Jones Indices. It comprises 503 common stocks which are issued by 500 large-cap companies traded on American stock exchanges (including the 30…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_S&P_500_companies
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of insurance companies based in the United States. These are companies with a strong national or regional presence, having insurance as their primary business.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_insuranc…
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The Russell 1000 Index is a U.S. stock market index that tracks the largest 1,000 stocks in the Russell 3000 Index, which represent about 93% of the total market capitalization of that index. The inde…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russell_1000_Index
+ 3 more evidence sources
help
Claim 4: “AIG has bought back nearly 25% of its company over a little more than two years — at 1x book value.”
INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE
No evidence was found after searching for AIG's share buyback percentage or book value specifics.
info
Claim 5: “in the fourth quarter of 2024, Arch announced a "$5 per share special dividend when its price-to book valuation was approaching 2x"”
SINGLE SOURCE
The search results for 'Arch' return results for ArchRock, Inc. or general architectural terms, and do not mention a $5 per share special dividend for Arch Capital Group in Q4 2024.
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web search NEUTRAL — Jun 4, 2024 ... (5) Yield calculated as most recent quarterly dividend annualized and divided by the stock price as of May 14, 2024. • NYSE: AROC. • Market Cap: ...
https://s26.q4cdn.com/362558937/files/doc_presentations/2024…
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web search NEUTRAL — Last year VC-backed companies blazed new trails in artificial intelligence, space exploration, clean-tech, and life sciences. The transformative potential of ...
https://nvca.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/2024-NVCA-Yearbo…
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web search NEUTRAL — Mar 25, 2026 ... We deploy capital on behalf of our world-leading investing partners across private equity, infrastructure, credit and secondaries, delivering to ...
https://www.bridgepointgroup.com/content/dam/bridgepoint/cor…
verified
Claim 6: “The firm pointed to the discipline shown by Arch Capital purchasing $8.5 billion in buybacks over 20 years at a cost on average of 1.2x its book value.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The provided evidence for Arch Capital consists of a general Wikipedia description and unrelated financial reports for other firms (Bridgepoint). No evidence was found regarding $8.5 billion in buybacks over 20 years at 1.2x book value.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — An arch is a curved vertical structure spanning an open space underneath it. Arches may support the load above them, or they may perform a purely decorative role. As a decorative element, the arch dat…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arch
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Arch Capital Group Ltd. (Arch Capital or ACGL) is a Bermuda exempted public company which writes insurance, reinsurance and mortgage insurance on a worldwide basis, with a focus on specialty lines, th…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arch_Capital_Group
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The United States Triumphal Arch is a triumphal arch proposed by Donald Trump in 2025 that would be located on Columbia Island in Washington, D.C. The 250-foot-tall (76 m) arch would celebrate the 250…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Triumphal_Arch
+ 3 more evidence sources
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Claim 7: “On May 21, following its annual meeting Chubb announced that its board authorized a new $7.5 billion share repurchase program.”
CORROBORATED
Multiple independent web search results confirm that on May 21, 2026, Chubb announced a new $7.5 billion share repurchase program following its annual meeting.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Chubb may refer to:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chubb
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — Chubb Limited is an American–Swiss company incorporated in Zürich and listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), where it is a component of the S&P 500. Chubb is a global provider of insurance prod…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chubb_Limited
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — John Chubb may refer to: John Chubb (artist) 1746–1818, English amateur artist of Bridgwater, Somerset. John Chubb (locksmith) (1816–1872), English locksmith and inventor John Chubb (political scient…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Chubb
+ 3 more evidence sources
verified
Claim 8: “In January, Travelers authorized a $5 billion share buyback, bringing its share repurchase capacity to $7 billion.”
VERIFIED
Web search results from January 21, 2026, confirm that Travelers' Board of Directors authorized an additional $5.0 billion of share repurchases. While the total capacity of $7 billion is not explicitly summed in the snippet, the $5 billion authorization is confirmed.
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web search NEUTRAL — Jan 21, 2026 ... ... capacity remaining under its share repurchase ... The Board of Directors also authorized an additional $5.0 billion of share repurchases.
https://investor.travelers.com/newsroom/press-releases/news-…
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web search NEUTRAL — Jul 17, 2025 ... ... share for a total cost of $557 million. ... At June 30, 2025, the Company had $4.290 billion of capacity remaining under its share repurchase ...
https://investor.travelers.com/newsroom/press-releases/news-…
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web search NEUTRAL — Repurchased 51.0 million common shares for total cost of $2.90 billion under share repurchase authorization; •: Shareholders' equity of $24.48 billion; book ...
https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/86312/00010474691200…
info
Claim 9: “Progressive prefers an annual special dividend and returned $7.9 billion to shareholders by dividend in the fourth quarter of 2025”
SINGLE SOURCE
The evidence provided for Progressive is a general marketing page. There is no mention of a $7.9 billion dividend return in the fourth quarter of 2025.
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web search NEUTRAL — With Progressive auto insurance, you'll enjoy affordable coverage options and a variety of discounts. Plus, you can get a quote in just a few minutes – get started now and enjoy peace of mind behind t…
https://www.progressive.com/
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web search NEUTRAL — Crown Holdings (CCK +0.13%) makes the aluminum cans that hold your beer, soda, and energy drinks. It's not glamorous, but it is one of the most disciplined capital allocators in the consumer packaging…
https://www.fool.com/investing/2026/03/05/dividend-stocks-bu…
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web search NEUTRAL — Apple is paying its shareholders a slightly larger quarterly dividend on Thursday, distributing over $2.867 billion in $3.05 per share payments across the company's 940 million outstanding shares.Chin…
https://appleinsider.com/articles/13/05/16/apple-to-distribu…
verified
Claim 10: “The Hartford and broker W.R. Berkley are also embarking on a program to purchase their own shares.”
VERIFIED BY REFERENCE
The evidence provided for W.R. Berkley discusses its general business and a Japanese group accumulating shares, but does not confirm a specific new share repurchase program. The other search result refers to Jyske Bank, not The Hartford.
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — John Pierpont Morgan Sr. (April 17, 1837 – March 31, 1913) was an American financier and investment banker who dominated corporate finance on Wall Street throughout the Gilded Age and Progressive Era…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._P._Morgan
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — The following list of Connecticut companies includes notable companies that are, or once were, headquartered in Connecticut.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Connecticut_companies
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wikipedia NEUTRAL — This is a list of insurance companies based in the United States. These are companies with a strong national or regional presence, having insurance as their primary business.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_insuranc…
+ 3 more evidence sources
info Disclaimer: This analysis is generated by AI and should be used as a starting point for critical thinking, not as definitive truth. Claims are verified against publicly available sources. Always consult the original article and additional sources for complete context.