Bermuda-based insurer Catlin said profit fell short of analysts' forecasts because of a bigger than expected claims bill from Superstorm Sandy and the Costa Concordia shipwreck.Catlin, operator of the biggest syndicate at Lloyd's of London, made a pretax profit of $339 million in 2012, missing the $384 million pencilled in by analysts in a company poll.The shortfall reflected a widening of Catlin's projected Sandy loss to $225 million, from an initial estimate of $200 million published in December.The insurer also said that the grounding of the Costa Concordia cruise liner off the Italian coast in January last year would cost it $51 million, up from previous guidance of $35 million.Catlin's 2012 profit was still up almost fivefold from the $71 million it made in 2011, with natural disaster-related payouts falling to $225 million from $678 million.Catlin blamed the bigger Costa Concordia loss on an Italian government order that the vessel be removed whole to limit potential pollution, a more costly process than cutting it up.The insurer is paying a 2012 dividend of 29.5 pence per share, an increase of 5.4 percent.Catlin CEO Stephen Catlin said: “The value of Catlin’s operating strategy was clearly demonstrated by the Group’s performance during 2012, during which the Group produced a return on net tangible assets of 14.6 percent and a return on equity of 11.3 percent.“We aim to build on this performance. Market conditions for many classes of business are currently good. Pricing for catastrophe-exposed business is at a high level, following rate increases in 2011 and 2012, as well as further rate improvements for US Property reinsurance at 1 January 2013 renewals in the aftermath of Windstorm Sandy. There is also an improving environment for certain lines of non-catastrophe business, such as US Casualty classes.”He added: “Catlin enters 2013 in an excellent position. Our business model — including our focus on underwriting discipline and our global distribution network — has proved successful. We believe that attractive underwriting opportunities exist across our six underwriting hubs. Our capital base remains solid and flexible. Catlin continues to build a business for the future, and we look ahead with confidence.”Last year was a relatively quiet one for natural disasters, the biggest of which was Sandy, a 1,000-mile wide storm that struck the north east of the United States in October and is expected to cost the insurance industry up to $25 billion.Insurers paid out a total of $65 billion in catastrophe claims last year, according to reinsurer Swiss Re, down sharply from $120 billion in 2011, when they had to foot the bill for Japan's Tohoku earthquake.