AXIS Capital Holdings Ltd.'s board authorized the repurchase of up to $1.0 billion of the company's common shares.

The new repurchase program is effective Jan. 1, 2017, and runs through Dec. 31, 2017. It will replace the existing authorization, which currently has approximately $264.9 million in remaining authorization available through Dec. 31.

Additionally, AXIS Capital's board declared a quarterly dividend of 38 cents per common share, representing an increase of 8% over the previous quarterly payout. The dividend is payable Jan. 17, 2017, to shareholders of record as of Dec. 30.