The global insurance conglomerate had planned to sell a portion of its stake in the unit in the second quarter, subject to regulatory approvals and market conditions. AIG began rebranding Corebridge Financial, one of the nation's largest providers of retirement and insurance products to institutional and individual buyers, in March.
In a late Monday earnings release, AIG Chief Executive Peter Zaffino stated that the event had been postponed "due to the high degree of equity-market volatility in May and June." He stated that AIG has taken advantage of the extra time to "accelerate progress on numerous separation initiatives." These include establishing financial statements and solidifying the unit's capital structure with a $6.5 billion Corebridge debt issuance.
The completion of the IPO remains "a significant priority for us," he said.
AIG's quarterly net income increased to $3.03 billion, up from $91 million the previous year. The most recent net income includes realized gains from the sale of a previously sold reinsurer in which AIG has a minority stake.
AIG's "adjusted after-tax income," which excludes nonrecurring items, fell 26% to $979 million from $1.33 billion.
Some of the decline can be attributed to the absence of year-ago gains from a portion of AIG's investment portfolios allocated to private-equity funds, which benefited from a rallying stock market. The property-casualty "General Insurance" business, on the other hand, saw a 73 percent increase in underwriting income.
In the absence of private-equity investment gains, AIG's net investment income fell 29 percent to $2.6 billion in the most recent quarter.
Mr. Zaffino attributed the 73 percent increase in property-casualty underwriting income to "meaningful top-line growth, strong renewal retention, and new business," as well as premium rate increases that are continuing at rates above loss-cost trends.
He claimed that AIG's property-casualty business had an 87.4 percent "combined ratio," which measures how much of each premium dollar goes to costs, the best showing in more than 15 years. AIG said its most recent results were also aided by a recent effort to reduce exposure to catastrophes, such as lowering coverage limits and using more reinsurance.
Mr. Zaffino joined AIG as global chief operating officer in July 2017 to assist with the turnaround of the property casualty unit. In December 2019, he was named president of AIG, and in March 2021, he was named CEO as well. His first full quarter as CEO was the previous year. Mr. Zaffino was appointed chairman in January.
The life-and-retirement-services division reported a 50% drop in "adjusted pretax income" to $563 million, owing primarily to lower net investment income. Fixed-income annuity sales increased, but other products declined. Premiums, fees, and deposits all fell by double digits.
These decreases were offset in part by fewer death claims related to the Covid-19 pandemic.
AIG sold a 9.9 percent equity stake in its life and retirement services business to Blackstone Inc. last year for $2.2 billion in cash. Some of Blackstone's assets will also be managed by the firm. AIG also has a deal in place with BlackRock Inc. to manage some of Corebridge's assets.