Fitch Ratings Affs Western & Southern 'AAA' IFS Rtgs; Rtg Outlook Stable.Business Editors CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 24, 2002 Fitch Ratings Fitch Ratings An international rating agency for financial institutions, insurance companies, and corporate, sovereign, and municipal debt. Fitch Ratings has headquarters in New York and London and is wholly owned by FIMALAC of Paris. 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 'AAA' insurer financial strength ratings of The Western and Southern Life Insurance Company (WSLIC WSLIC Western and Southern Life Insurance Company ) and its wholly owned life insurance subsidiaries, Western-Southern Life Assurance Company (WSLAC), Columbus Life Insurance Company (Columbus), Integrity National Life Insurance Company (Integrity) and National Integrity Life Insurance Company (National Integrity). The Rating Outlook on all ratings is Stable. The ratings reflect the organization's strong capital position, adjusted profitability that is in line with strong life insurance companies and excellent sales growth in annuities through the bank and broker-dealer distribution channels. The ratings also take into account the organization's strong liquidity, good asset quality, skilled expense management and a conservative management team. Somewhat offsetting these attributes is that traditional life insurance sales through the home service market, which represents the primary source of the organization's total premiums, has declined over the past five years. Fitch believes it will be a challenge for the organization to significantly improve its competitive positioning given the maturity of the home service market. However, over the past five years, the Years, The the seven decades of Eleanor Pargiter’s life. [Br. Lit.: Benét, 1109] See : Time organization has diversified diversified (di·verˑ·s product offerings and distribution channels, which has become the primary driver of new premium growth. Western and Southern's fixed and variable annuity Variable Annuity An insurance contract in which, at the end of the accumulation stage, the insurance company guarantees a minimum payment. The remaining income payments can vary depending on the performance of the managed portfolio. sales have grown significantly through the IFS distribution channel and the acquisition of Integrity. From 1997-2001, the CAGR CAGR See: Compound Annual Growth Rate of annuity annuity: see insurance. annuity Payment made at a fixed interval. A common example is the payment received by retirees from their pension plan. There are two main classes of annuities: annuities certain and contingent annuities. sales (including IFS) and traditional life insurance was 40.0% and (1.0%), respectively. Western and Southern's excellent capital position is a significant factor in the ratings. The organization has a strong absolute and risk-adjusted capital position, which is enhanced with additional conservative accounting and reserving practices. Asset quality and liquidity are good, as the investment portfolio has a large concentration of publicly traded investment-grade bonds Investment-grade bonds A bond that is assigned a rating in the top four categories by commercial credit rating companies. S&P classifies investment-grade bonds as BBB or higher, and Moody's classifies investment grade bonds as BAA or higher. Related: High-yield bond. . While Western and Southern has one of the highest percentages of equities in the industry, Fitch considers the overall quality of the investment portfolio to be good as the organization invests assets supporting liabilities in fixed income securities and invests surplus in equities to improve long-term total return. Entity/Issue/Type Action Rating/Outlook Western and Southern Life Insurance --Insurer financial strength Affirmed 'AAA'/Stable. Western-Southern Life Assurance Company --Insurer financial strength Affirmed 'AAA'/Stable. Columbus Life Insurance Company --Insurer financial strength Affirmed 'AAA'/Stable. Integrity Life Insurance Company --Insurer financial strength Affirmed 'AAA'/Stable. National Integrity Life Insurance Company --Insurer financial strength Affirmed 'AAA'/Stable. |
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