AM Best has revised the outlooks to positive from stable
and affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) of A (Excellent)
and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long Term ICR) of “a+”
(Excellent) of the U.S. property/casualty (P/C) subsidiaries of
Assurant, Inc. (Assurant) (headquartered in New York, NY) [NYSE:
AIZ]. These companies are collectively referred to as Assurant
P&C Group (Assurant P&C). At the same time, AM Best has
revised the outlook to positive and affirmed the Long-Term ICR of
“bbb+” (Good) and all associated Long-Term Issue Credit Ratings
(Long-Term IRs) and indicative Long-Term IRs of Assurant. AM Best
also has affirmed the Short-Term IR. (See below for a detailed list
of the companies and Long- and Short-Term IRs.)
Concurrently, AM Best has upgraded the FSR to A (Excellent) from
A- (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICRs to “a” (Excellent) from “a-”
(Excellent) of Assurant’s credit and life/health (L/H)
subsidiaries: American Bankers Life Assurant Company of Florida
(Miami, FL) and Caribbean American Life Assurance Company (San
Juan, PR). The outlook of these Credit Ratings (ratings) is
stable.
The ratings reflect Assurant P&C’s balance sheet strength,
which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its strong
operating performance, favorable business profile and appropriate
enterprise risk management (ERM).
The revision of the outlooks to positive for Assurant P&C
reflects AM Best’s expectation that the group’s operating
fundamentals and future capital generation should remain favorable
over the intermediate term. The group’s ability to generate strong
earnings and cash flow through operations on a pre-dividend basis,
along with having a strong parent, Assurant, are considered in the
revised outlooks. While these points are important, the revised
outlooks are tied mainly to how these earnings translate into
better-than-average capital formation at the group level, and at
the parent (on a consolidated basis). Although the risk-adjusted
capital level at the group is not expected to change, the improved
assessment of the group’s balance sheet strength is derived largely
from the group’s earnings power and limited variability.
AM Best assesses Assurant’s balance sheet strength at very
strong, supported by risk-adjusted capitalization, as measured by
Best’s Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), at the strongest level,
overall stable reserves and very strong earnings generating
capabilities, a majority of which is derived from low-risk
businesses such as fee for service products that include most
business in the Global Lifestyle segment. Assurant’s property
catastrophe exposure, which stems mostly from its lender placed
homeowners book in Global Housing, is well-managed, has adequate
reinsurance protection, and its share of the total revenue and
profits has decreased steadily compared with considerable growth
achieved in the Global Lifestyle segment.
The ratings of Assurant’s credit L/H insurance companies,
American Bankers Life Assurance Company of Florida and Caribbean
American Life Assurance Company, reflect their balance sheet
strength, which AM Best assesses as strong, as well as their strong
operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate
ERM.
The rating upgrades reflect the importance of the Assurant
Lifestyle L&H Group entities to serve as Assurant’s fully
licensed life, accident, and health insurance company for credit
insurance and related business despite being a small piece of
overall Assurant business and premiums written. The entities
receive implicit support, and are integrated fully into the
organization’s operations and strategic plans. The credit insurance
business adds to overall product diversity for Assurant.
The FSR of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICRs of “a+”
(Excellent) have been affirmed with the outlooks revised to
positive from stable for the following P/C subsidiaries of
Assurant, Inc.:
- American Bankers Insurance Company of Florida
- American Security Insurance Company
- Standard Guaranty Insurance Company
- Caribbean American Property Insurance Company
- Voyager Indemnity Insurance Company
- Virginia Surety Company, Inc.
- Reliable Lloyds Insurance Company
The following Short-Term IR has been affirmed:
Assurant, Inc.— -- AMB-1 (Outstanding) on commercial paper
The following Long-Term IRs have been affirmed, with the
outlooks revised to positive from stable:
Assurant, Inc.— -- “bbb+” (Good) on USD 300 million 4.90% senior
unsecured bonds, due 2028 -- “bbb+” (Good) on USD 300 million 4.20%
senior unsecured bonds, due 2023 (USD 225 million outstanding) --
“bbb+” (Good) on USD 350 million 3.70% senior unsecured bonds, due
2030 -- “bbb+” (Good) on USD 475 million 6.75% senior unsecured
bonds, due 2034 (USD 275 million outstanding) -- “bbb” (Good) on
USD 400 million 7.00% subordinated bonds, due 2048 -- “bbb” (Good)
on USD 250 million 5.25% subordinated bonds, due 2061
The following indicative Long-Term IRs on securities available
under the shelf registration have been affirmed, with the outlooks
revised to positive from stable:
Assurant, Inc.— -- “bbb+” (Good) on senior unsecured -- “bbb”
(Good) on subordinated debt -- “bbb-” (Good) on preferred stock
This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been
published on AM Best’s website. For all rating information relating
to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the
office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings
referenced in this release, please see AM Best’s Recent
Rating Activity web page. For additional information
regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please
view Guide to Best's Credit Ratings. For information
on the proper use of Best’s Credit Ratings, Best’s Performance
Assessments, Best’s Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best
press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best’s
Ratings & Assessments.
AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and
data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry.
Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in
over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam,
Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information,
visit www.ambest.com.
Copyright © 2022 by A.M. Best Rating
Services, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
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version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220826005314/en/
Jieqiu Fan Senior Financial Analyst +1 908 439
2200, ext. 5372 jieqiu.fan@ambest.com
Daniel J. Ryan Senior Director +1 908 439 2200,
ext. 5325 daniel.ryan@ambest.com
Jeffrey Lane Senior Financial Analyst +1 908
439 2200, ext. 5567 jeffrey.lane@ambest.com
Christopher Sharkey Manager, Public Relations
+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5159
christopher.sharkey@ambest.com
Jeff Mango Managing Director, Strategy &
Communications +1 908 439 2200, ext. 5204
jeffrey.mango@ambest.com
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