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WIKI ANALYSIS
Headquartered in New York's financial district, Assurant, Inc. is a premier provider of specialized insurance products in North America and selected other markets. The company operates through main business segments: Assurant Solutions (35.0% of 2006 revenue), Assurant Specialty Property (17.8%), Assurant Health (26.1%), and Assurant Employee Benefits (15.0%) Assurant's business units provide creditor-placed homeowners' insurance, manufactured housing homeowners' insurance, debt protection administration, credit insurance, warranties and extended service contracts, individual health and small employer group health insurance, group dental insurance, group disability insurance, group life insurance, and pre-funded funeral insurance. Assurant's strategy is to manage a select portfolio of specialty businesses that are leaders in their markets. The company completed its IPO on February 5, 2004, offering 80,000,000 shares of its common stock at $22.00 per share. Effective in 2Q06, the company has separated its Assurant Solutions into two businesses Assurant Specialty Property and Assurant Solutions. Concurrently, the Company has realigned the Preneed segment under the new Assurant Solutions segment, as the franchise was sold in 2005 and premiums continue to decline.
Trends and Forces
- Market conditions and interest rates affect the value of Assurant’s investment portfolio. Like many insurance companies, Assurant invests a portion of the premiums that it collects. Market volatility may increase the amount of unrealized gains or losses, making returns on investment hard to predict. Since its securities are traded on the market, a decline in the security’s value will be reflected on its balance sheet. Exposure to troubled markets may also hurt its investment performance: For the year ending 2007, 7% of its portfolio was composed of mortgage-backed securities. Uncertain returns on investment also make it difficult to set premium rates, resulting in a loss of business to competitors, or a decrease in earnings.
- Pandemics, natural disasters, and other large-scale disasters could affect Assurant’s profitability. Such events could result in an increase in claims for its homeowner’s and life insurance businesses, which account for 87% of its earned premiums. Depending on how severe the disaster is, Assurant may also be unable to resume operations in such locations. For the year ending 2007, 39% of its policyholders lived in either California, Texas, or Florida, all three of which are prone to natural disasters.
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