AM Best Affirms Credit Ratings of Unum Group and Its Core U.S. Life/Health Subsidiaries
06 Septembre 2024 - 9:17PM
Business Wire
AM Best has affirmed the Financial Strength Rating (FSR)
of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term
ICR) of “a+” (Excellent) for the members of Unum Insurance Group.
These companies are the core U.S. life/health (L/H) insurance
subsidiaries of Unum Group (Unum) (headquartered in Chattanooga,
TN) [NYSE: UNM]. In addition, AM Best has affirmed the Long-Term
ICR of “bbb+” (Good) and the Long-Term Issue Credit Ratings
(Long-Term IR) of Unum. The outlook of these Credit Ratings
(ratings) is stable. (See below for a complete listing of the L/H
subsidiaries and the Long-Term IRs.)
The ratings reflect Unum’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best
assesses as strong, as well as its strong operating performance,
favorable business profile and appropriate enterprise risk
management.
The group’s affirmation is based partially on Unum’s strongest
level of risk-adjusted capitalization, as measured by Best’s
Capital Adequacy Ratio (BCAR), adequate liquidity of its balance
sheet and a conservatively managed investment portfolio, which has
historically performed well over the last few years with higher
yields and low defaults. Unum has leveraged investment capabilities
and interest rate mitigations strategies to provide income and
capital preservation. Unum uses reinsurance also to strategically
manage its balance sheet risks and has done so with high quality
counterparties. Furthermore, its ratings reflect strong operational
performance with emphasis on its accident & health product
lines. Sales have been strong over the medium term and retention
strategies have supported strong persistency measures in its core
product lines. A strong labor market typically correlates with a
vibrant employee benefits market; therefore, a weakening economy
could temper growth in this space for Unum. Unum has brought
innovative capabilities to the market with its HR Connect as the
company continues to be a competitive player in the human resources
space.
AM Best will continue to monitor Unum’s reserve adequacy on its
closed block of long-term care business, which if not managed well
could have a material impact on Unum’s balance sheet strength. AM
Best notes that Unum has a heavy reliance on reinsurance; however,
the company has used its high-quality reinsurance partners to
de-risk its balance sheet and does so in conjunction with its
hedging program in mitigating interest sensitivity.
The FSR of A (Excellent) and the Long-Term ICRs of “a+”
(Excellent) have been affirmed with stable outlooks for the
following life/health subsidiaries of Unum Group:
- Unum Life Insurance Company of America
- Unum Insurance Company
- Provident Life and Accident Insurance Company
- The Paul Revere Life Insurance Company
- Colonial Life & Accident Insurance Company
- First Unum Life Insurance Company
- Provident Life and Casualty Insurance Company
- Starmount Life Insurance Company
The following Long-Term IRs have been affirmed with stable
outlooks:
Unum Group—
-- “bbb+” (Good) on $275 million 3.875% senior unsecured notes,
due 2025
-- “bbb+” (Good) on $500 million 4.50% senior unsecured notes,
due 2025
-- “bbb+” (Good) on $250 million 6.75% senior unsecured notes,
due 2028
-- “bbb+” (Good) on $200 million 7.25% senior unsecured notes,
due 2028
-- “bbb+” (Good) on $400 million 4.00% senior unsecured notes,
due 2029
-- “bbb+” (Good) on $250 million 7.375% senior unsecured notes,
due 2032
-- “bbb+” (Good) on $250 million 5.75% senior unsecured notes,
due 2042
-- “bbb+” (Good) on $250 million 5.75% senior unsecured notes,
due 2042
-- “bbb+” (Good) on $450 million 4.50% senior unsecured notes,
due 2049
-- “bbb+” (Good) on $600 million 4.125% senior unsecured bonds,
due 2051
-- “bbb+” (Good) on $400 million 6.0% senior unsecured notes,
due 2054
-- “bbb-” (Good) on $300 million 6.25% junior subordinated
notes, due 2058
Provident Financing Trust I—
-- “bbb-” on $300 million 7.405% capital securities, due
2038
The following indicative Long-Term IRs under the shelf
registration have been affirmed with the stable outlooks:
Unum Group—
-- “bbb+” (Good) on senior unsecured
-- “bbb” (Good) on subordinated
-- “bbb-” (Good) on preferred stock
Unum Group Financing Trust I and II—
-- “bbb-” (Good) on preferred securities
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.
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Wayne Kaminski Associate Director +1 908 882
1916 wayne.kaminski@ambest.com Bridget Maehr
Director +1 908 882 2080 bridget.maehr@ambest.com
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Relations +1 908 882 2310 christopher.sharkey@ambest.com
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908 882 2318 al.slavin@ambest.com
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