Moody’s
The Hartford winds down life insurance operationsPosted by RJ and Makay on Mar 21, 2012 |
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Hartford Financial Services Group (HIG) Inc’s plan to exit a large portion of its life insurance business has prompted a Standard & Poor’s (S&P) Rating Services downgrade of subsidiaries previously aggregated under Hartford Life, Standard & Poor’s announced today. The agency is assigning individual ratings and outlooks for each legal entity. HIG intends to shift focus to its property & casualty insurance, group benefits and mutual fund business.
Moody’s Investors Service has cited Ameriprise Financial Inc. and Lincoln National Corp. for their strong variable annuity (VA) hedging programs in Moody’s recent report on the most frequently asked questions about variable annuities. Ameriprise has gained an edge through controlled distribution.
Following weeks of speculation, Standard & Poors (S&P) downgraded on Friday the credit rating of the United States by one level, to AA+ from AAA. S&P explained the decision as a judgment about the nation’s leaders, saying that “the gulf between the political parties” had reduced its confidence in the government’s ability to manage its finances. In addition to the downgrade, S&P’s outlook on the country’s short and long-term ratings was negative, indicating a further downgrade to AA was possible.
