CAS Exam 8 Study Note: P&C Insurance Company Valuation

This study note was prepared for use on the CAS Exam Syllabus. Its purpose is to describe various valuation approaches presented in introductory finance textbooks and to discuss practical implementation issues that arise when using these methods to value a Property & Casualty insurance company. The methods described focus on those used by practitioners, including the dividend discount model, the discounted cash flow model using free cash flow, the abnormal earnings model and relative valuation using multiples. Applications of option pricing methods in equity valuation are briefly discussed, including the real options framework.