S&P Global Market Intelligence compiles ratings actions in the insurance space daily through 5 p.m. ET. Actions after 5 p.m. ET will be included in the following day's roundup.
US and Canada
The ratings reflect the company's balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as very strong, as well as its strong operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management. The ratings also reflect the continuously improving business and financial profiles of AES Global's parent, AES Corp., according to A.M. Best.
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A.M. Best affirmed the long-term issuer credit rating of "bbb+" of Markel Corp. A.M. Best also affirmed the financial strength ratings of A and the long-term issuer credit ratings of "a+" of the Markel North America insurance group members, State National Insurance Co. Inc. and its subsidiaries, and Lloyd's Syndicate 3000.
The Markel North America insurance group members are Markel Insurance SE, Essentia Insurance Co., Evanston Insurance Co., FirstComp Insurance Co., Markel American Insurance Co., Markel Insurance Co., Markel International Insurance Co. Ltd., SureTec Indemnity Co. and SureTec Insurance Co.
The subsidiaries of State National are National Specialty Insurance Co., United Specialty Insurance Co., City National Insurance Co., Independent Specialty Insurance Co., Pinnacle National Insurance Co. and Superior Specialty Insurance Co.
The ratings of the Markel North America insurance group, which is considered the lead rating unit in the Markel enterprise, reflect its balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as strongest, as well as its adequate operating performance, favorable business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
The ratings of State National and its subsidiaries reflect their balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as very strong, as well as their strong operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
The ratings of Syndicate 3000 reflect the balance sheet strength of the Lloyd's market, which A.M. Best categorizes as very strong, as well as the market's strong operating performance, favorable business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
Additionally, A.M. Best affirmed the financial strength ratings of A and the long-term issuer credit ratings of "a" of Markel Bermuda Ltd. and affiliate Markel Global Reinsurance Co.
The ratings of Markel Bermuda and Markel Global reflect their balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as very strong, as well as their adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
The outlook of all ratings is stable.
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A.M. Best upgraded the financial strength ratings to A from A- and the long-term issuer credit ratings to "a" from "a-" of Farmers Alliance Mutual Insurance Co. Inc. and wholly owned subsidiaries Alliance Indemnity Co. and Alliance Insurance Co. Inc. The outlook was revised to stable from positive.
The ratings of the companies reflect their balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as strongest, as well as their adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
The rating upgrades reflect the stabilization in the group's underwriting performance, which has resulted in sustained profitability following underwriting actions in previous years, A.M. Best said.
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DBRS Morningstar confirmed the BBB (high) issuer rating of Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd., the A issuer and financial strength rating of Northbridge General Insurance Corp., and the A financial strength rating of Federated Insurance Co. of Canada Ltd.
The confirmation of Fairfax Financial's rating reflects its global presence in the property and casualty insurance and reinsurance market, according to the rating agency.
The trends are stable. The trend on Fairfax Financial's rating considers the company's comprehensive risk management and demonstrated ability to operate in challenging economic environments and mitigate the effect of significant catastrophe losses, DBRS Morningstar said.
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Fitch Ratings affirmed the BBB long-term issuer default rating of Sirius International Group Ltd. and the A- insurer financial strength ratings of operating subsidiaries Sirius America Insurance Co., Sirius Bermuda Insurance Co. Ltd. and Sirius International Insurance Corp.
The rating action comes after Fitch's periodic annual review of the company.
The outlook was changed to negative from stable, reflecting operating performance deterioration in recent years, Fitch said. The rating agency said Sirius' rating continues to be aided by the company's established reinsurance franchise; strong capitalization and reasonable financial leverage, partially offset by China Minsheng Investment Group's majority ownership; more moderate business profile; low fixed-charge coverage; and reduced financial flexibility.
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Moody's affirmed the A1 insurance financial strength ratings of Sompo International Holdings Ltd.'s insurance operating subsidiaries.
The rating affirmation reflects Sompo International's good position in the global specialty insurance and reinsurance markets, its solid capital adequacy, and implicit and explicit support from parent Sompo Japan Nipponkoa Insurance Inc., according to Moody's.
The outlook is stable, reflecting the rating agency's view that Sompo Japan will continue to provide explicit and implicit support and that Sompo International will prudently manage its catastrophe exposures.
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S&P Global Ratings upgraded the long-term issuer credit rating to A+ from A of Power Corp. of Canada and affirmed the A+ ratings of Power Financial Corp.
The upgrade of Power Corp. and alignment with the ratings of Power Financial reflect the rating agency's view that the proposal to acquire the remaining 35.9% of common shares of the latter that it does not currently own will remove structural subordination and allow greater capital fungibility between the two entities.
The outlook is stable, reflecting S&P Global Ratings' expectation that Power Corp. will continue to generate robust earnings and maintain solid capitalization without meaningfully increasing financial leverage.
Europe
The ratings reflect the companies' balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as strongest, as well as their adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
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A.M. Best affirmed the financial strength rating of A and the long-term issuer credit rating of "a" of Luxembourg's Barents Reinsurance SA.
The ratings of the company reflect its strategic importance to and the support it receives from Barents Re Reinsurance Co.
The outlook was revised to negative from stable, reflecting the decline in Barents Re Reinsurance's profitability with respect to past years, which has resulted from negative trends in premium sufficiency, according to the rating agency.
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Fitch upgraded to A from BBB+ the insurer financial strength rating of Adriatic Slovenica dd after the change in the insurer's strategic status to "core" from "important" to parent Generali. The outlook is negative.
Fitch's assessment of the strategic status was based on the planned legal merger of Generali's Slovenian operations, effective Jan. 3, 2020.
Middle East and Africa
A.M. Best affirmed the financial strength rating of B and the long-term issuer credit rating of "bb+" of Kenya-based East Africa Reinsurance Co. Ltd. The outlook is stable.
The ratings reflect East Africa Reinsurance's balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and marginal enterprise risk management.
Asia-Pacific
A.M. Best affirmed the financial strength rating of A and the long-term issuer credit rating of "a" of China Taiping Insurance (HK) Co. Ltd. The outlook is stable.
The ratings reflect the company's balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as very strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
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A.M. Best affirmed the financial strength rating of B++ and the long-term issuer credit rating of "bbb" of Vietnam's Bao Minh Insurance Corp. The outlook is stable.
The ratings reflect Bao Minh Insurance's balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, neutral business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
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A.M. Best upgraded the financial strength rating to B from B- and the long-term issuer credit rating to "bb" from "bb-" of New Zealand-based Lifetime Income Ltd. The outlook is stable.
The ratings reflect the company's balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as adequate, as well as its marginal operating performance, limited business profile and marginal enterprise risk management.
The upgrade reflects an improvement in A.M. Best's assessment of Lifetime Income's business profile.
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A.M. Best removed from under review with developing implications and affirmed the financial strength rating of B++ and the long-term issuer credit rating of "bbb" of Australia's Pacific International Insurance Pty. Ltd. The outlook is stable.
These ratings were placed under review with developing implications in April after the rating agency was notified of a material change in Pacific International's business plans and prospective scope of operations.
The ratings reflect the company's balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as strong, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
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A.M. Best downgraded the financial strength rating to C from C+ and the long-term issuer credit rating to "ccc" from "b-" of Papua New Guinea-based Capital General Insurance Co. Ltd.
The ratings reflect Capital General's balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as weak, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and weak enterprise risk management.
The rating downgrades reflect a deterioration in A.M. Best's view of the reinsurer's operating performance and balance sheet strength fundamentals. The outlook remains negative, reflecting A.M. Best's expectation of continued pressure on risk-adjusted capitalization over the medium term and ongoing volatility in operating performance metrics.
Additionally, A.M. Best affirmed the financial strength rating of C- and the long-term issuer credit rating of "cc" of Capital Life Insurance Co. Ltd. The outlook is stable.
The ratings reflect Capital Life's balance sheet strength, which A.M. Best categorizes as weak, as well as its adequate operating performance, limited business profile and weak enterprise risk management.
Concurrently, the ratings were withdrawn because the companies requested to stop participating in A.M. Best's rating process. The ratings of Capital General and Capital Life factor in a neutral impact from their 100% ownership by Capital Insurance Group.
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Moody's affirmed the A2 insurance financial strength rating of ICBC-Axa Assurance Co. Ltd. with a stable outlook.
The affirmation reflects the insurer's strong distribution capabilities through leveraging the vast network and well-regarded brand of its largest shareholder, Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., Moody's said. Also, the company's capitalization is solid relative to its business volume, aided by regular capital injections from its shareholders, according to the rating agency.
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S&P Global Ratings assigned a preliminary A issuer credit and financial strength ratings to China Reinsurance Hong Kong Co. Ltd., subject to regulatory approval and the rating agency's review of the final documentation related to the set-up of the reinsurer.
The ratings consider S&P Global Ratings' expectation that the China Reinsurance (Group) Corp. subsidiary will have an integral role in the parent's overseas expansion strategy, specifically for life reinsurance offerings.
The outlook is stable, mirroring that on China Re Group's and reflecting the rating agency's expectation that China Reinsurance Hong Kong will stay as a core unit of its parent over the next two years.
This S&P Global Market Intelligence news article may contain information about credit ratings issued by S&P Global Ratings. Descriptions in this news article were not prepared by S&P Global Ratings.
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