A.M. Best Affirms Rating of StanCorp Financial Group Inc.Business Editors OLDWICK, N.J.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 17, 2003 A.M. Best Co. has affirmed af·firm v. af·firmed, af·firm·ing, af·firms v.tr. 1. To declare positively or firmly; maintain to be true. 2. To support or uphold the validity of; confirm. v.intr. the financial strength rating of A (Excellent) of Standard Insurance Company (Portland, OR) and Standard Life Insurance Company of New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , (White Plains, NY), both wholly-owned subsidiaries of StanCorp Financial Group Inc. (Portland, OR) (NYSE NYSE See: New York Stock Exchange : SFG SFG StanCorp Financial Group SFG San Francisco Giants (baseball team) SFG Special Forces Group SFG Sum Frequency Generation SFG Square Foot Gardening SFG Symmetrical Field Geometry (JBL speaker technology) ). Concurrently, A.M. Best has affirmed the senior debt rating of "bbb+" on the $250 million 6.875% 10-year senior notes issued by StanCorp Financial Group Inc. All ratings have been assigned stable outlooks. The rating affirmation of Standard Insurance reflects favorable fa·vor·a·ble adj. 1. Advantageous; helpful: favorable winds. 2. Encouraging; propitious: a favorable diagnosis. 3. and consistent earnings, its established presence in the employee benefits market, solid risk adjusted capitalization capitalization n. 1) the act of counting anticipated earnings and expenses as capital assets (property, equipment, fixtures) for accounting purposes. 2) the amount of anticipated net earnings which hypothetically can be used for conversion into capital assets. , positive cash flow and a conservative level of financial leverage. The rating also recognizes the benefit derived from management's disciplined pricing strategy, which has contributed to continued favorable operating results, unlike other more aggressive players in this market segment. Additionally, the company has moved to expand its distribution, improve its results and reduce both risk and volatility in its businesses and investment portfolio. These strengths are partially offset by the general vulnerability of virtually all of Standard Insurance's business lines to adverse economic conditions and large exposure to investments in commercial mortgages. A.M. Best believes further weakening in the economy, or an extended period of low interest rates, could have a negative impact on the company's operating results. It should be noted that Standard Insurance has worked diligently dil·i·gent adj. Marked by persevering, painstaking effort. See Synonyms at busy. [Middle English, from Old French, from Latin d to reduce its mortgage portfolio exposure by expanding its geographic distribution. A.M. Best expects financial leverage and debt service coverage to remain under 25% and at least seven times, respectively. Favorable cash flow at StanCorp's principal insurance company, Standard Insurance, permits a high level of dividends, which provides ample support for the debt service. It is anticipated that continuation of favorable earnings will contribute to debt servicing requirements. A.M. Best Co., established in 1899, is the world's oldest and most authoritative insurance rating and information source. For more information, visit A.M. Best's Web site at www.ambest.com. |
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