Insurance - Life/Annuity: Life Insurance State of the Industry – 1Q26 Favorable Mortality Offsets VII Pressure and Group Disability Headwinds

Research evidence excerpt

Insurance - Life/Annuity: Life Insurance State of the Industry – 1Q26 Favorable Mortality Offsets VII Pressure and Group Disability Headwinds

ntum in international businesses and the continued improvements in Exhibit 2: Life Insurance: Share Price

mortality. Dental and other group business should also see further improvements Performance One Day Post Earnings

moving into the 2H due in part to seasonality. Further, challenges facing VII and Post Earnings Share Price Reaction

spread businesses is now largely understood and baked into the valuation, giving the 8%

6%

life insurers a better risk-reward profile than the P&C insurers, in our view. As such, 4%

we prefer strong underwriters such as Globe Life, MetLife, and Voya, who all have Performance 2%

Price 0%paths for incremental improvements at an attractive valuation.

Share (2%)

Life Insurance 1Q26 Results Supported by Favorable Mortality, Partially Offset (4%)

by Other Short-Term Headwinds. Life insurers delivered solid earnings in 1Q26, (6%)

EQH CRBG UNM PFG GL PRU RGA PRI MET AFL VOYA LNC

driven by favorable mortality and strong international results. These positives were

partially offset by temporary headwinds in group disability, declining AUM due to Source: FactSet, Morgan Stanley Research.

equity market volatility in March, and below-target variable investment income (VII).

Core earnings drivers — fees, spreads, and underwriting — showed mixed

performance depending on business mix, macro conditions, and company-specific

factors. Favorable mortality was a key earnings driver, benefiting both group and

individual life segments, with RGA and Globe Life among the primary beneficiaries.

On the annuity side, RILA sales remained strong following 2025 momentum, while