EARNINGS
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
Aetna Posts Record Loss: Aetna Life & Casualty Co. reported its biggest quarterly loss in company history, after taking a $1.03-billion charge to cut 4,000 jobs and drop two product lines. The nation’s fourth-largest insurer said its fourth-quarter loss was widened to $1.13 billion, or $10.09 a share, from a loss of $191.9 million, or $1.74, a year earlier. Core earnings before the charge and investment gains jumped to $142.9 million from $600,000, benefiting from lower expenses and fewer catastrophe losses.
