Bermuda-based reinsurer Validus Holdings Ltd last night posted net operating earnings of $170.6 million that easily beat the expectations of Wall Street analysts. The company benefited from the absence of notable loss events, as it recorded net income of $207.3 million in the third quarter, compared to $56.6 million in the same period in 2011.The firm’s net income for the quarter includes $6.3 million from the PacRe joint venture, $18 million from the AlphaCat sidecars and $52.1 million from Lloyd’s insurer Talbot.Net operating income was $1.74 per share, comfortably exceeding the $1.33 per share consensus of analysts polled by Yahoo Finance. That equates to an annualised operating return on average equity of 19.2 percent.“These results and growth in diluted book value per share of 6.1 percent inclusive of dividends for the quarter and 14.7 percent year to date reflect a light quarter for natural catastrophes, Validus’ rock solid balance sheet and the excellent portfolio of short tail risks which we have been able to assemble due to Validus’ size, scale and expertise in both its Bermuda and London operations,” Validus CEO Ed Noonan said.The company wrote more business as total managed gross premiums for the July through September period, which included the business of sidecars AlphaCat 2011 and AlphaCat 2012, rose two percent year over year to $399.5 million.Underwriting income for the third quarter was $143.1 million compared to $111.8 million in the same period last year — a 28 percent increase.Validus $37.2 million in losses from notable events like Hurricane Isaac and the drought in the US. The effect of these events on net income was a decrease of $35.6 million.Combined ratio, a reflection of underwriting profitability and the proportion of premium dollars spent on claims and expenses, was 69.9 percent. That included $49.8 million of favourable loss reserve development on prior accident years, benefiting the loss ratio by 10.5 percent.Validus ended the quarter with shareholders’ equity of $4.1 billion, plus $461.5 million of noncontrolling interest. Diluted book value per common share was $36.27 at September 30, 2012, compared to $34.43 at June 30, 2012.