The company said it expects the 2019 dividend rate to be lower than the 6.34% rate the company set for 2018. The company did not say what it expects the 2019 dividend rate to be.
The total 2019 dividend payout will likely be bigger than the 2018 payout, however, because of the growth of the company's whole life business, the company said in an announcement of the new rate.
Eileen McDonnell, the company's chairman, said in a statement that the company has demonstrated enduring financial strength.
"We are proud to be able to say that Penn Mutual has never failed to pay dividends to eligible policyholders — even through our country's most challenging economic times," McDonnell said.
Here are what some other mutual life insurers have said they are doing about their 2019 dividends:
- New York Life Insurance Company: Increasing the payout 1.1%, to $1.8 billion.
- Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company: Increasing the payout 5.7%, to $5.6 billion.
- Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company: Increasing the payout 7.5%, to $1.72 billion.
— Read Some Jobs Are Best Left to Mutuals and Nonprofits, on ThinkAdvisor.