LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute has released its top 20 annuity manufacturer rankings for 2016.
According to LIMRA's annuity sales survey for the fourth quarter of 2016, Jackson National Life captured the number one spot for overall annuity sales and for variable annuity sales. Allianz Life of North America topped the fixed annuity market, and New York Life topped the list for fixed-rate annuity sales.
Read on for all the rankings of the top 20 companies in variable, fixed and total annuity sales in 2016. In each area, the top 20 companies make up 75% or more of the market share.
Total annuity sales were $51 billion in the fourth quarter, falling 17% from the prior year, according to LIMRA. This is the third consecutive quarter of decline in overall annuity sales and the lowest quarterly sales since the first quarter 2002. For the year, total annuity sales fell 6% to $222.1 billion.
In 2016, total fixed annuity sales hit a record-breaking $117.4 billion, which is 14% higher than 2015 levels and nearly $7 billion higher than 2009 (when sales were last at their highest), according to the Q4 survey.
After strong results in the first three quarters, fixed annuity sales fell 13% to $25.7 billion in the fourth quarter.
"Unlike the last several years where indexed annuities propelled overall fixed annuity growth, in 2016, fixed-rate deferred was the primary driver of fixed sales in 2016," said Todd Giesing, assistant research director of LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute, in a statement. "A large block of fixed-rate deferred annuities purchased in 2009 came due in the first half of the year, creating a significant amount of money in motion."
Meanwhile, variable annuity sales were down 20% in the fourth quarter, with a total of $25.3 billion. VA sales have been below $30 billion every quarter of 2016.
Total VA sales were $104.7 billion in 2016, 21% lower than 2015 and a decline of more than $28 billion compared with a year earlier. This represents the fifth consecutive year of VA sales declines. VA sales are nearly $80 billion lower than their peak in 2007 and are at their lowest level since 1998.
