Securian Announces 5.5% Profit-Sharing for Employees

ST. PAUL, Minn., Feb. 17, /PRNewswire/ -- St. Paul's River Centre exploded with the cheers of 2,400 Securian Financial Group employees when Chairman and CEO Robert L. Senkler announced that the company's contribution to their 401(k) accounts will be equal to 5.5 percent of annual salary. Senkler made the announcement at Securian's annual all-company meeting, February 10, 2009.

For 35 years, Securian's profit-sharing program has contributed to each employee's 401(k) account, regardless of whether or not the employee contributes at all. The amount has ranged from a low of 4 percent to a high of 10 percent of salary. Securian's profit-sharing record continued unbroken this year despite the financial meltdowns that are occurring throughout the financial services industry.

"These are the worst economic conditions in my career and, in some people's estimation, the worst since the Great Depression," said Senkler, who joined Securian out of college in 1974. "But, despite this environment and the well-documented problems of other companies, we survived and indeed thrived. The high quality and diversification of our assets is helping us weather this period better than most of our peers*, and our relative position remains very good."

Senkler said all of the company's insurance businesses set sales records in 2008, and they all made money. Top line growth, measured in GAAP product revenue, increased 20 percent, and insurance in force increased 15 percent.

Earnings were solid but less than expected as a result of declining investment yields. Reported GAAP operating earnings were $100 million. Capital, measured as realized GAAP equity, declined seven percent to $2.5 billion as required investment write-downs offset operating earnings. Assets under management declined 19 percent to $24.6 billion due to the adverse investment markets.

The quality of Securian's investments remained well above industry norms. At year-end, 97 percent of bonds in its life insurance general account were investment grade, and there were zero mortgage delinquencies.

"Although some losses are inevitable in this environment, we ended 2008 with the highest capital and surplus-to-liability ratio of any company in our highly rated peer group and we are one of the most highly rated life insurance companies in America for claims-paying ability," Senkler said. "We have sufficient capital to protect our company and keep the promises we've made to our customers."

In 2008, Securian retained 96 percent of its employees and repeated its annual appearances on the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal's list of "Best Places to Work in the Twin Cities," AARP's "Best Employers for Workers over 50," and Computerworld's "100 Best Places to Work in IT."

Securian Financial Group, Inc. provides financial security for individuals and businesses in the form of insurance, retirement plans and investments. Affiliates include Minnesota Life Insurance Co., Advantus Capital Management, Allied Solutions, LLC, Securian Casualty Company, Securian Financial Services, Inc., Securian Life Insurance Company and Securian Trust Company. As of December 31, 2008, Securian has $731 billion of life insurance in force, $25 billion in assets under management and a nationwide work force of 3,500 employees. Securian serves more than 9 million customers.

Securian Financial Group is part of an insurance holding company group that is highly rated by the major independent rating agencies that analyze the financial soundness and claims-paying ability of insurance companies. For more information about the rating agencies and Securian's ratings, please visit securian.com.

*Securian's peer group includes Aegon USA, AXA, CUNA Mutual, Great West Life, Guardian Life, Hartford Life, ING, Lincoln Financial, Manulife, MassMutual, MetLife, Nationwide, New York Life, Northwestern Mutual, Pacific Life, Principal Financial, Prudential Financial, Standard of Oregon and Western & Southern

SOURCE Securian Financial Group

CONTACT: Mark Hier of Securian Financial Group, +1-651-665-3672, +1-651-335-1774, [email protected]