Research & Reports
AEGON and Assumptions – Further Thoughts on Q3 Numbers
In this commentary we’ll offer up some comments on third-quarter results of Dutch insurer AEGON, because it has a substantial variable annuity business in the U.S. and its experience in the quarter mirrored that of...
The Q3 Market Uptick Boosted VA Assets – as For Sales? We’re Not Sure
Third quarter earnings season for the publicly-traded insurers we watch regularly concluded last week, and for most of those companies, variable annuity business operations retained profitability, largely because the stock market’s rise caused assets under...
Various Benefit Updates, Changes From Around the VA Business
In recent weeks the variable annuity product pipeline hasn’t exactly been buzzing with activity, but we have seen a few tweaks and rider updates – most, but not all, involving de-risking – and we’ll discuss...
Thoughts on Q3 VA Industry Sales – and a Few Product Developments
Earnings season for publicly-traded insurers is now underway but won’t finish until midway through next month, so in this commentary we’ll offer up some of our suspicions on how variable annuity sales moved in the...
Reviewing Variable Insurance Fund Filings from September, 2014
This report contains our regular coverage of variable insurance fund filings from the prior month. During September there were not so many new registrations, but we did see a large amount of sub-advisory changes and...
A New In-Plan VA Contract From Prudential – And Other Recent Filings
In this report we’ll pick up from last week’s coverage of variable product filings from recent weeks, and this time we’ll touch on a new contract coming from Prudential Financial intended for employer-sponsored retirement plans…
New Lincoln National Contracts – and Other VA Product Filing News
In this report we’ll discuss variable annuity filing activity from the past few weeks. Of particular note was the registration of new contracts from Lincoln National, aimed at IRA rollover money, which will include a...
An Update on Trends in Variable Insurance Volatility-Control Portfolios
Variable insurance volatility-control portfolios continue to gather assets at a brisk pace around the industry – and not just because of the introduction of brand-new ones. In recent months a large number of existing portfolios...
Thoughts About Directions in Variable Annuity Sales As Q3 Winds Down
The start of the fall season is close upon us, as is the end of the third quarter, so in this commentary we’ll provide some quick thoughts about where we think variable annuity industry sales...