Aegon, the Dutch life insurer that owns the Transamerica brand, reported on Thursday underlying earnings for the second quarter that missed analysts' expectations and showed its solvency ratio dipping slightly. Aegon said underlying earnings before tax were 549 million euros ($611.37 million), up 7 percent from 514 million euros in the same period a year ago and 568 million euros forecast by analysts polled by Reuters.
Chief Executive Alex Wynaendts described the underlying results as "solid", with growth in variable annuities, pensions and asset management offsetting lower earnings from fixed annuities and divestments. The company said its solvency under the current IGD rules that measure the financial strength of insurance companies declined to 206 percent from 216 percent at the end of the first quarter, "mainly driven by negative market impacts."
Shares in smaller Dutch rival Delta Lloyd NV have fallen more than 20 percent over the past two days due to worries about the company's solvency, under the new Solvency II rules that come into force in Europe in January. Aegon said it expected its Solvency II ratio to be between 140 and 170 percent. Delta Lloyd said it was tracking below 140 percent, though the individually tailored models Dutch regulators will use to measure Solvency II at both companies are still under negotiation.
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