A.M. Best Affirms Ratings of American United Life and Affiliates; Affirms Debt Rating of OneAmerica Financial Partners.OLDWICK, N.J. -- 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 A (Excellent) financial strength rating of American United Life Insurance Company (AUL) (Indianapolis, IN) and its affiliates (AUL Group). The issuer credit rating (ICR (Intelligent Character Recognition or Image Character Recognition) The machine recognition of hand-printed characters as well as machine printing that is difficult to recognize. ) of AUL has been affirmed at "a+" and ICRs of "a+" have been assigned to its affiliates, State Life Insurance Company (Indianapolis, IN) and Pioneer Mutual Life Insurance Company (North Dakota North Dakota, state in the N central United States. It is bordered by Minnesota, across the Red River of the North (E), South Dakota (S), Montana (W), and the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba (N). ). Concurrently, A.M. Best has affirmed the debt rating of "a-" on $75 million 7.75% of surplus notes. A.M. Best has also affirmed the long-term debt Long-Term Debt Loans and financial obligations lasting over one year. Notes: For example debts obligations such as bonds and notes which have maturities greater than one year would be considered long-term debt. rating of "bbb+" on $200 million 7.00% senior unsecured notes issued by OneAmerica Financial Partners, Inc. (OneAmerica) (Indianapolis, IN), an intermediate holding company. The outlook for all ratings remains stable. These ratings reflect AUL's established niche position in its core retirement services line of business, strong risk-adjusted capital position, conservative investment portfolio and diversified sources of earnings and revenue. A.M. Best believes AUL Group's focus on core operations will lead to strong growth opportunities, such as State Life's fourth quarter acquisition of the life, annuity and long-term care long-term care (LTC), n the provision of medical, social, and personal care services on a recurring or continuing basis to persons with chronic physical or mental disorders. business of Golden Rule Insurance Company Golden Rule Insurance Company is a health insurance company based in Indianapolis, Indiana, U.S.A. It is a unit of UnitedHealth Group. It offers a type of health insurance known as a health savings account, and was closely involved in the political discussions that led to the . This transaction increased AUL Group's asset base by $1.8 billion and premium base by $175 million. The exit from the reinsurance The contract made between an insurance company and a third party to protect the insurance company from losses. The contract provides for the third party to pay for the loss sustained by the insurance company when the company makes a payment on the original contract. line of business in 2002 resulted in an improved risk profile and reduced earnings volatility. The organization's debt-to-total capital at approximately 19% and its interest coverage ratio of four to seven times are within A.M. Best's expectations for the current ratings. Offsetting these strengths are competitive pressures in the organization's core operating divisions and the need to effectively deploy excess capital. State Life officially merged into American United Mutual Insurance Holding Company (AUMIHC) in December 2004, formalizing the strategic alliance which occurred in 1994. Pioneer Mutual merged as a formal member of AUMIHC in 2002. Both of these affiliates benefit AUL by adding additional scale and increased distribution channels. On January 31, 2006, A.M. Best placed the financial strength rating of A- (Excellent) under review with developing implications for Cherokee National Life Insurance Company (CNL CNL CityNightLine (German Rail) CNL Cancel CNL Clinical Nurse Leader Cnl Colonel CNL Center for Naval Leadership CNL Compensated Neutron Log (oil industry) ) following OneAmerica's announced agreement with Securian Financial Group to purchase OneAmerica's loan protection and credit insurance products and distribution. This sale enables the AUL Group to focus on its core lines of business- individual, group and retirement services. The following debt ratings have been affirmed with stable outlooks: American United Life Insurance Company-- --"a-" on $75 million 7.75% surplus notes, due 2026 OneAmerica Financial Partners Inc.-- --"bbb+" on $200 million 7.00% senior unsecured notes, due 2033 For Best's Debt Ratings, all other Best's Ratings Best's rating A rating A.M. Best Co. assigns to insurance companies based on the company's ability to meet its obligations to its policyholders. , an overview of the rating process and rating methodologies, please visit www.ambest.com/ratings. 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 http://www.ambest.com. |
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