Nov 4 (Reuters) - Loews Corp ( L ) reported an increase

in quarterly profit on Monday, helped by higher investment

income and strong performance in its insurance unit.

The New York-based company's investment income jumped to

$776 million in the third quarter from $592 million a year

earlier.

Income attributable to Loews ( L ) rose to $401 million, or $1.82

per share, in the three months ended Sept. 30, compared with

$253 million, or $1.12 per share, last year.

The company earns most of its revenue from its insurance

unit CNA Financial ( CNA ), in which it holds a more than 90%

stake, as per LSEG data.

The insurance unit reported an underlying combined ratio of

91.6% in its property and casualty business, compared with 90.4%

a year earlier. A ratio below 100% means an insurer earned more

in premiums than it paid out in claims.

CNA Financial's ( CNA ) quarterly insurance premiums rose to $2.59

billion from $2.41 billion.

"CNA performed well despite elevated industry catastrophe

losses," Loews ( L ) CEO James Tisch, who is set to retire at the end

of 2024, said.

Analysts said in October that Hurricane Milton could cause

losses of up to $100 billion for the global insurance industry.