NEW YORK, Jan 8 (Reuters) – U.S. life insurer Symetra’s latest attempt to go public shows how difficult the market remains for initial public offerings, even with the cachet of being partly owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc <BRKa.N>.

Symetra first filed for an IPO in 2007, but pulled the deal in October 2008 during the worst of the financial crisis.

This time, the Bellevue, Washington-based company has cut its offering and made other tweaks — such as having Berkshire and White Mountains Insurance Group Ltd <WTM.N> retain full majority ownership.

Buffett’s ownership “will give this IPO credibility,” said Scott Sweet, senior managing partner of research firm IPO Boutique, although he added there was nothing to stop Buffett from selling shares later in a secondary offering.

NEW YORK, Jan 8 (Reuters) – U.S. life insurer Symetra’s latest attempt to go public shows how difficult the market still is for initial public offerings, even with the cachet of being partly owned by Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc <BRKa.N>.

Symetra first filed for an IPO in 2007, but pulled the deal in October 2008 during the worst of the financial crisis.

This time, the Bellevue, Washington-based company has cut its offering and made other tweaks — such as having Berkshire and White Mountains Insurance Group Ltd <WTM.N> retain full majority ownership.

Buffett’s ownership “will give this IPO credibility,” said Scott Sweet, senior managing partner of research firm IPO Boutique, although he added there was nothing to stop Buffett from selling shares later in a secondary offering.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Life insurance company Symetra Financial Corp set the terms of its initial public offering on Wednesday, lowering the overall value of the deal from its October filing and signaling that it is likely to price soon.

The company, which sells group health, retirement and life insurance, and employee benefits, said that the entire offering could net as much as $434.7 million and it expects it’s share of the proceeds to be about $208.3 million.

In October, the company had filed to raise as much as $575 million, but did not provide details of the offering.

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway <BRKa.N>, which owns 26.3 percent of the company, is keeping all of its shares. A fund affiliated with investor J.C. Flowers, which currently owns 2.3 percent of the company, is selling all of its shares.

NEW YORK, Jan 6 (Reuters) – Life insurance company Symetra Financial Corp set the terms of its initial public offering on Wednesday, lowering the overall value of the deal from its October filing and signaling that it is likely to price soon.

The company, which sells group health, retirement and life insurance, and employee benefits, said that the entire offering could net as much as $434.7 million and it expects it’s share of the proceeds to be about $208.3 million.

In October, the company had filed to raise as much as $575 million, but did not provide details of the offering.

Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway <BRKa.N>, which owns 26.3 percent of the company, is keeping all of its shares. A fund affiliated with investor J.C. Flowers, which currently owns 2.3 percent of the company, is selling all of its shares.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Insurance regulators have approved an accounting change to temporarily give insurers the ability to use future tax benefits to boost regulatory capital, despite the protests of consumer groups who say the change could hurt policyholders.

The measure, approved by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) at a quarterly meeting earlier this week, allows life and property-casualty insurers to count billions of dollars of deferred tax assets as regulatory capital through the end of next year.

Life insurers in particular had been clamoring for the change, eager for ways to boost capital after the sector was badly hit by the credit crisis. Regulators approved the measure 11 months after voting against it and other measures that would have provided capital relief.

“Insurance regulators have long understood the need for conservatism in insurer’s financial statements,” said NAIC President Roger Sevigny, in a statement. “This change recognizes that fact, but also recognizes that overconservatism can actually be detrimental to consumers.”

NEW YORK, Dec 10 (Reuters) – U.S. insurance regulators have approved an accounting change to temporarily give insurers the ability to use future tax benefits to boost regulatory capital, despite the protests of consumer groups who say the change could hurt policyholders.

The measure, approved by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) at a quarterly meeting earlier this week, allows life and property-casualty insurers to count billions of dollars of deferred tax assets as regulatory capital through the end of next year.

Life insurers in particular had been clamoring for the change, eager for ways to boost capital after the sector was badly hit by the credit crisis. Regulators approved the measure 11 months after voting against it and other measures that would have provided capital relief. [ID:nN29312912]

“Insurance regulators have long understood the need for conservatism in insurer’s financial statements,” said NAIC President Roger Sevigny, in a statement. “This change recognizes that fact, but also recognizes that overconservatism can actually be detrimental to consumers.”

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Prudential Financial Inc’s <PRU.N> sale of its stake in a brokerage joint venture is on schedule to close next month and is expected to give its capital position a “significant lift,” the company said on Thursday.

Vice Chairman Mark Grier, speaking at an annual investor conference, said the final price the company receives in the sale of its minority stake in Wachovia Securities to majority owner Wells Fargo & Co <WFC.N> was still being decided in an appraisal process.

The Newark, New Jersey-based insurer, in a regulatory filing earlier on Thursday, said it assumed proceeds would boost regulatory capital for subsidiary Prudential Insurance by an estimated $2 billion, and add about $4 billion in investable funds. The latter estimate reflects taxes to be paid.

Prudential had already emerged from the credit crisis stronger than some of its smaller peers, and the proceeds from this sale will only help bolster that position, said executives. “We expect to outperform peers meaningfully and consistently,” said Chief Executive John Strangfeld.

NEW YORK (Reuters) – MetLife Inc <MET.N> forecast 2010 earnings that could beat average Wall Street expectations, helped by cost cuts, improved investment returns and higher revenue, but said it did not see a return to historical growth levels until at least 2011.

The largest publicly traded U.S. life insurer said it expects full-year 2010 operating earnings to rise by about half to between $3.3 billion and $3.6 billion, or $4.00 to $4.40 a share.

The average Wall Street forecast is $4.11 a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

MetLife shares rose about 1 percent, or 35 cents, to close at $35.68 on the New York Stock Exchange.

NEW YORK, Dec 7 (Reuters) – MetLife Inc <MET.N> forecast 2010 earnings that could beat average Wall Street expectations, helped by cost cuts, improved investment returns and higher revenue, but said it did not see a return to historical growth levels until at least 2011.

The largest publicly traded U.S. life insurer said it expects full-year 2010 operating earnings to rise by about half to between $3.3 billion and $3.6 billion, or $4.00 to $4.40 a share.

The average Wall Street forecast is $4.11 a share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

MetLife shares rose about 1 percent, or 35 cents, to close at $35.68 on the New York Stock Exchange.