‘Uniquely positioned’: Equitable outlines future post-Corebridge merger

When Equitable Holdings and Corebridge Financial announced their blockbuster merger in May, it left a lot of questions about how the two giants, each with their own areas of strength, would form a cohesive unit.

A few more answers came out on Wednesday as both companies, still operating independently while the merger clears regulatory hurdles, held second-quarter earnings calls with Wall Street analysts.

Shareholders of both companies approved the transaction on July 30, with more than 97% voting in favor, Equitable CEO Mark Pearson said. Federal antitrust review has been completed, and all required regulatory filings have been submitted.

Integration planning is well underway, Pearson added, with the organizational structure established through the first three management levels and work progressing on technology integration. The combined company is expected to deliver at least 10% accretion to earnings and cash flow per share by the end of 2028 and generate a return on equity exceeding 15%.

"We remain focused on achieving our 2026 financial targets and are not treating this as a gap year," Pearson said. "The combined company will be uniquely positioned to win across the retirement, insurance, asset, and wealth management markets. ... We will have scale, distribution, and flywheel benefits that few others possess."

The merger, expected to close by the end of 2026, stunned the industry. Corebridge ($27.4 billion) and Equitable ($23.3 billion) finished third and fourth, respectively, in LIMRA's final 2025 annuity sales rankings.

The merger will expand Equitable's presence in institutional retirement markets by adding capabilities such as pension risk transfer and structured settlements while providing additional balance sheet capacity to support future growth, executives said.

Chief Financial Officer Robin Raju also highlighted opportunities to cross-sell products after the merger closes. Equitable Advisors currently sells about $2 billion in fixed annuities annually and will eventually be able to distribute Corebridge's fixed annuity, term life and indexed universal life products once the transaction is completed.

"The planning behind the scenes, in terms of all the revenue synergies, ... that's a big focus of us now,” Raju said. “And we expect to hit the ground running."

Until then, the companies will continue to operate independently because of regulatory requirements, he added.

Benefits business sold

Raju also discussed the sale of Equitable's employee benefits business to The Hartford, saying the unit had grown to serve more than 800,000 customers and generate approximately $500 million in premiums but had not reached sufficient scale to become profitable.

Equitable’s Employee Benefits portfolio includes group life, disability, paid family and medical leave and supplemental health products, as well as dental and vision. The deal was announced on Tuesday.

Raju said the transaction is expected to have a neutral to slightly positive impact on near-term earnings, with proceeds earmarked for investment in the company's larger businesses.

By acquiring Equitable’s Employee Benefits technology, The Hartford will upgrade digital experiences for employees, employers, and brokers via real-time API integrations, according to a news release. Both firms will jointly support existing customers, and 300 transitioning employees will join The Hartford at closing.

Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Quarterly Highlights

• The Retirement segment concluded the quarter with $189 billion in assets under management, representing a 15% increase over the year-ago quarter.
• Reported net inflows of $1.7 billion in Retirement, $2 billion in Wealth Management and $0.8 billion in Asset Management.
• In the Retirement segment, operating earnings of $402 million increased nearly 14% over the prior-year quarter, primarily due to higher fee-based revenue and a lower tax rate.
• In the Corporate & Other segment, the operating loss of $135 million in the second quarter decreased from an operating loss of $183 million in the prior year quarter.

By The Numbers

• Total Revenue: $1.7 billion ($2.4 billion in Q2 2025)
• Operating Earnings: $488 million ($352 million in Q2 2025)
• Earnings Per Share: Non-GAAP operating EPS was $1.70 ($1.10 in Q2 2025)
• Share Repurchases: $366 million in Q2 2026
• Dividend Declared: $83 million in Q2 2026
• Stock Price Movement: Shares rose nearly 6% by late Wednesday to $51.09

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InsuranceNewsNet Senior Editor John Hilton has covered business and other beats in more than 20 years of daily journalism. John may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @INNJohnH.