Best’s News & Research Service - August 16, 2021 04:13 PM (EDT)
AM Best Upgrades Credit Ratings for Georgia Farm Bureau Group Members
- August 16, 2021 04:13 PM (EDT)
Oldwick //BestWire// - AM Best has upgraded the Financial Strength Rating (FSR) to B++ (Good) from B+ (Good) and the Long-Term Issuer Credit Ratings (Long-Term ICR) to “bbb” (Good) from “bbb-” (Good) of Georgia Farm Bureau Mutual Insurance Company and Georgia Farm Bureau Casualty Insurance Company, collectively referred to as the Georgia Farm Bureau Group (Georgia Farm Bureau). Both companies are domiciled in Macon, GA. The outlook for the FSR has been revised to stable from positive, while the outlook for the Long-Term ICR is positive.
The Credit Ratings (ratings) reflect Georgia Farm Bureau’s balance sheet strength, which AM Best assesses as very strong, as well as its marginal operating performance, limited business profile and appropriate enterprise risk management.
The upgrade of the ratings reflects improvements Georgia Farm Bureau has made to its balance sheet and risk-adjusted capitalization over the last several years. Surplus appreciation has been reported in four consecutive years with this trend continuing in 2021. This has been achieved organically through operating earnings. The quality of capital continues to improve as management repays its outstanding surplus notes. Underwriting leverage measures have come down considerably to levels that are on par with the private passenger standard auto and homeowners composite averages. In addition, common stock leverage was reduced in order to lower the organization’s total exposure to the equity markets. Finally, reserving practices have materially improved as reflected through consecutive redundancies in recent years.
The continuation of the positive outlook on the Long-Term ICR reflects continued improvements in the group’s operating performance, driven by proactive underwriting initiatives that have successfully lowered volatility and improved profitability levels. If these results continue, AM Best anticipates a potential revision in the group’s operating performance assessment.
This press release relates to Credit Ratings that have been published on AM Best’s website. For all rating information relating to the release and pertinent disclosures, including details of the office responsible for issuing each of the individual ratings referenced in this release, please see AM Best’s Recent Rating Activity web page. For additional information regarding the use and limitations of Credit Rating opinions, please view Guide to Best’s Credit Ratings. For information on the proper use of Best’s Credit Ratings, Best’s Preliminary Credit Assessments and AM Best press releases, please view Guide to Proper Use of Best’s Ratings & Assessments.
AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City.