EVANSTON, Ill., Nov. 30, 2005 (PRIMEZONE) -- MasterDex, an Allianz Life (NYSE:AZ) indexed annuity, was the quarter's top-selling product in the Beacon Research Fixed Annuity Premium Study for the fifth consecutive period. Three book value products -- New York Life's LifeStages/MainStay Single Premium Fixed Annuity(1), John Hancock's (NYSE:MFC) GPA Plus and Genworth Financial's (NYSE:GNW) Capital Provider Advantage -- were numbers two, three, and four, respectively. The ING US (NYSE:ING) Secure Index annuity took fifth place. Third quarter sales were reported for some 182 products by 47 participating insurance companies.
Rank Company Name Product Name Product Type
1 Allianz Life MasterDex Indexed
2 New York Life LifeStages/ Book Value
MainStay
Single Premium
Fixed Annuity
3 John Hancock GPA Plus Book Value
4 Genworth Financial Capital Provider Book Value
Advantage
5 ING USA Annuity
& Life Secure Index Indexed
Four of the five top products overall also led sales in a distribution channel, with the Allianz Life MasterDex tops among independent producers and New York Life's MainStay Single Premium Fixed Annuity the bank channel leader. The top seller among captive agents was another New York Life book value product, the LifeStages Choice Fixed Annuity. John Hancock's GPA Plus led sales among both independent and large/regional broker-dealers.(a) Allstate's Choice Rate was the best-seller among wirehouses. Genworth's Capital Provider Advantage topped sales in the "Other" category.(2)
Channel Company Product Product Type
Banks and S&Ls New York Life MainStay Single Book Value
Premium Fixed Annuity
Captive Agents New York Life LifeStages Choice Book Value
Fixed Annuity
Independent Allianz Life MasterDex Indexed
Producers
Independent
Broker-Dealers(a)John Hancock GPA Plus Book Value
Large/Regional
Broker-Dealers John Hancock GPA Plus Book Value
Wirehouses Allstate Choice Rate MVA
Financial
Other Genworth Capital Provider Book Value
Financial Advantage
By product type, Allstate Financial's (NYSE:ALL) Tactician Plus was third quarter's best-selling market-value adjusted (MVA) product. Genworth Financial had the leading immediate annuity.
One-year interest guarantee periods (IGPs) increased their dominance of traditional fixed deferred annuity sales, a reflection of third quarter's flat yield curve and expectations of continued future interest rate increases. The one-year IGP accounted for 87.9% of book value sales, up from 77% in the previous quarter. In terms of MVA sales, the shift was less dramatic. The one-year IGP's share was 42.8%, up from 39.5% in second quarter, 2005.
Compared to the previous quarter, sales of all product types were down except for fixed immediate annuities. Study participants' sales of these annuities grew 5.8%, continuing the trend which began in first quarter, 2005.
"Third quarter's healthy fixed immediate sales probably benefited from ongoing positive publicity regarding their importance in retirement income planning," said Jeremy Alexander, CEO of Beacon Research. "With the gradual disappearance of defined benefit pensions and uncertainty regarding the future of Social Security, the appeal to aging Baby Boomers of a guaranteed income for life is clear. Strong sales programs by big players including Genworth and MetLife (NYSE:MET)(3) certainly had a major impact. We also saw impressive percentage gains from some smaller players in the fixed immediate market including The Standard (NYSE:SFG), and Western United Life."
About the Beacon Research Fixed Annuity Premium Study
The quarterly Study is the first to track and analyze product-level fixed annuity sales on an ongoing basis. It features commentary by Milliman USA, a leading actuarial consulting firm recognized for its annuity expertise. Combining Beacon's capabilities in fixed annuity information with Milliman's knowledge and analytic skills, the Study provides timely market intelligence of the highest quality. It's designed to report what's moving in each channel and why. The rapid growth in Study participation is testimony to the need for this information.
About Beacon Research
Beacon Research is an independent research organization founded in 1997. It compiles market intelligence on fixed annuity products for subscribers to its web-based systems at www.annuitynexus.com. Carriers access these systems to support product development, rate setting and competition research. Distributors use them for product analysis and selection. The new AnnuityNexus Sales Support System is an important resource for retention teams and sales desk staff throughout the distribution chain. Beacon also licenses information and software tools to other platforms, including websites for sales representatives and AnnuityNet's annuity automation platform. Beacon's fixed annuity benchmark series -- the industry's first -- is available through Ibbotson Associates. Directly and through strategic alliances, Beacon information can be accessed by hundreds of financial institutions and distributors.
(1) New York Life products sold by career agents carry the LifeStages
brand name while those sold through other channels carry the
MainStay brand name.
(2) Number of products for which sales were reported per channel:
Banks and S&Ls - 64; Captive Agents - 80; Independent Producers -
79; Independent Broker-Dealers - 33; Large/Regional Broker-
Dealers - 32; Wirehouses - 20; Other - 4.
(3) MetLife's third quarter immediate annuity sales increased on a
pre-consolidated basis with the former Travelers Life, as well as
on a consolidated basis.
(a) Due to a distribution channel redefinition, John Hancock's
independent broker-dealer sales include revenue formerly reported
as captive agent channel sales.
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