Hartford Posts Loss, Revamps VAs

On the life side, the group benefits division increased fully insured sales 5%, to $400 million, and it is reporting $66 million in core earnings on $1.2 billion in revenue, down only slightly from $70 million in core earnings on $1.2 billion in revenue for the first quarter of 2008.

Retirement plan deposits fell just 1%, to $2.2 billion, and individual life revenue fell just 1%, to $289 million.

Fixed annutiy deposits increased to $633 million, from $69 million.

But variable annuity deposits plunged to $702 million, from $2.5 billion; individual annuity revenue fell 30%, to $509 million; and institutional markets group revenue fell 16%, to $523 million. International markets revenue fell 15%, to $258 million.

Separate account assets fell 31%, to $125 billion. U.S. guaranteed minimum death benefit liability stood at $749 million at the end of the quarter, up from $203 million a year earlier.

Hartford is responding to the results by suspending new sales in the United Kingdom and Japan, dropping efforts to move into Germany, and "pursuing options for its institutional markets business with the goals of preserving capital and reducing risks," the company says. Hartford's institutional markets business serves institutions, companies, and wealthy individuals and families.

At the institutional markets business, Hartford "will be taking appropriate steps to align the business cost structure" with the measures taken to preserve capital and reduce risk, the company says.

In addition, Hartford "is postponing the launch of its new variable annuity product suite originally scheduled for May and is instead introducing a series of product modifications effective May 1, 2009," the company says.

In May, Hartford will start charging more for the Lifetime Income Builder Portfolios, a lifetime income rider program that requires asset allocation.

The company will stop selling the Lifetime Income Builder Selects income rider to new policyholders. That lifetime income rider program imposes no investment restrictions.

In the fall, Hartford will introduce a suite of new VA products "that will be more consistent with changing customer preferences in the evolving variable annuity market," with a focus on "simplicity, competitive cost and a lower risk profile," Hartford says.

The company also has implemented a "company-wide expense and efficiency program" that could save about $250 million per year, according to Hartford Chairman Ramani Ayer.

""The financial markets remain difficult, and the outlook for the economy is uncertain," Ayer says in a statement about the first-quarter results. "In light of these conditions, even as a well-capitalized company, we are taking additional measures. We are considering a range of potential options with the goals of preserving capital, stabilizing ratings and reducing risks. However, after evaluation of our opportunities, we may determine that the best course for The Hartford is to continue with a diversified business model."

Andrew Kligerman, a securities analyst at UBS Investment Research, New York, and other UBS analysts write in a comment that Hartford's results were "much worse than expected."

John Nadel and Jason Weyeneth, analysts at Sterne Agee Group Inc., New York, gave their comment the headline "another sobering quarter," but they write that Hartford's book value per share was better than they had expected.

A copy of Hartford's first-quarter financial supplement is available here.