John Hilton

3 days ago | insurancenewsnet.com | John Hilton

UnitedHealth Group executives took the unusual step Tuesday of downgrading earnings guidance issued less than four weeks ago. The health insurer announced that CEO Andrew Witty is stepping aside in favor of former CEO Stephen Hemsley, who led UHG for more than a decade before assuming a board role in August 2017. Hemsley and Chief Financial Officer John Rex held an unscheduled 20-minute call with investors and Wall Street analysts to explain the alarming financial trends.

3 days ago | insurancenewsnet.com | John Hilton

As a tumultuous first quarter ground on, life insurance companies and annuity sellers reacted in different ways: some pulled back and some continued business as usual. Athene Life & Annuity took a different approach, CEO Jim Belardi said Monday. “With the presence of market volatility, we made the strategic decision to accelerate new business volumes, which resulted in $26 billion of gross inflows,” he said during the insurer’s Investor Day conference call with Wall Street analysts.

3 days ago | insurancenewsnet.com | John Hilton

The California Supreme Court is tackling the thorny question of whether the state’s life insurance lapse laws apply to policies that originated in other states. In a two-sentence notice on April 16, the court agreed to a request from the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in Pitt v. Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Co. The case originates with plaintiff Susan A.

1 week ago | insurancenewsnet.com | John Hilton

Rumors are swirling about the potential sale of Brighthouse Financial but executives were tight-lipped during a Friday conference call with Wall Street analysts. “We don't comment on market rumors or speculation, so I'm just going to leave it at that,” CEO Eric Steigerwalt said at the conclusion of the call. According to a recent Semafor report, Sixth Street and Carlyle Group have submitted a joint bid for Brighthouse in what could be a $9 billion takeover bid.

1 week ago | insurancenewsnet.com | John Hilton

Jackson Financial continues its evolution from primarily a variable annuity seller to a one-stop annuity operation that performs like an asset manager. Jackson’s retail annuity suite reported first-quarter growth across all lines, executives said Thursday:Sales of variable annuities, which reached $2.7 billion, were up 9% from the first quarter of 2024, with a more than 40% increase in sales of annuities without lifetime benefits.