Nebraska News

Even Buffet’s Berkshire Hathaway Finds Itself in Bear Market

It’s a bear market for Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc., too. The shares of the billionaire’s insurance and investment company have dropped more than 20 percent from their most recent peak, the first time that has happened since February 2003. …

S&P Advises Floods Could Lead to Ratings Actions on Midwest-Focused Insurers

Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services said it does not expect the 2008 Midwest floods to impact ratings or outlooks for the majority of companies that it rates. However, property/casualty writers that are geographically concentrated in the affected states, especially those …

Agriculture Secretary Visits Neb. Meat Plants, Says U.S. Beef Generally Safe

The U.S. agriculture secretary expressed confidence in the nation’s food safety system, but said the meat processing industry will always face challenges because the bacteria that animals carry evolves. “I don’t think we’ll ever see a totally bacteria-free environment in …

Nebraska Official Say Storm Left Nearly $13 Million in Damage

New estimates say a fierce storm late last month that brought wind gusts higher than 115 mph to the Omaha, Nebraska area left nearly $13 million in damage in its wake. The Nebraska Emergency Management Agency says the June 27 …

Employers Accused of Using Federal ERISA Law to Deny Benefits

Dying of cancer, Thomas Amschwand did everything he was told to make sure his wife would collect on the life insurance policy he had through his employer. “He was obsessed with dotting every ‘i’ and crossing every ‘t’,” Texas native …

Nebraska Beef Ltd Now Recalling 5.3 Million Pounds of Beef

Nebraska Beef Ltd. is expanding a recall announced on July 1 to include all 5.3 million pounds of meat it produced for ground beef between May 16 and June 26. Federal investigators have linked Nebraska Beef’s products to an outbreak …

Nebraska Beef Recalls 532,000 Pounds of Ground Beef

With the thought of hamburgers sizzling on the grill for the July 4 holiday, recalled beef is not a welcome message. But the reality is that Nebraska Beef Ltd. is recalling nearly 532,000 pounds of ground beef produced in the …

Ratings Recap: Darwin, Cincinnati Financial, Arch Indemnity, Prospect

A.M. Best Co. has placed the financial strength rating (FSR) of ‘A-‘ (Excellent) and issuer credit ratings (ICR) of “a-” of Darwin Group and its members under review with positive implications. Best also said the FSR of ‘A- (Excellent) and …

Chinese Fund Manager Pays $2.1 Million for Buffett Lunch; Tip Included

A Chinese fund manager has won a lunch with famed U.S. investor Warren Buffett after bidding $2.11 million for the opportunity in a charity auction, more than three times what the lunch fetched last year. Zhao Danyang, who runs Hong …

Ratings Recap: Guardian, Old Republic, Ingosstrakh, Cattolica, Caelus Re, Secura, Elwood

A.M. Best Co. has upgraded the issuer credit rating to “bbb+” from “bbb” and affirmed the financial strength rating of ‘B++’ (Good) of Guardian Insurance Company, Inc. of the U.S., Virgin Islands. The outlook for both ratings is stable. “These …