EVANSTON, Ill., Sept. 25, 2003 (PRIMEZONE) -- Beacon Research announced today that the Principal Financial Group(r) has joined the growing group of some 100 participants in its AnnuityNexus fixed annuity database, featuring carrier-approved product profiles unique in their accuracy, comprehensiveness and timeliness. Annuity products offered through Principal Life Insurance Company, a member of the Principal Financial Group, will now be included in the database.
"We're pleased to make information on our fixed annuity products available for publication on our distributors' websites through Beacon Research," said Melissa Crew, director of Product Development & Marketing at The Principal. "It's helpful to have access to Beacon's AnnuityNexus web-based systems to analyze our products in relation to others."
Principal Life Insurance Company consistently receives high ratings from the major ratings firms: Moody's Investor's Service, Standard & Poor's Corporation, A.M. Best Company and Fitch (see note 1).
"The Principal is a very significant fixed annuity carrier," said Stephanie Brandt, director of Research at Beacon. "We've worked closely together to assure that our profiles of their products are correct and complete, and we're delighted to welcome Principal as a data partner."
About The Principal
The Principal Financial Group(r) (The Principal(r)) (see note 2) is a leader in offering businesses, individuals and institutional clients a wide range of financial products and services, including retirement and investor services, life and health insurance and mortgage banking through its diverse family of financial services companies. More employers choose the Principal Financial Group for their 401(k) plans than any other bank, mutual fund, or insurance company in the United States (see note 3). A member of the Fortune 500, the Principal Financial Group has $128.0 billion in assets under management (see note 4) and serves some 14.8 million customers worldwide from offices in Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America and the United States. Principal Financial Group, Inc. is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PFG. For more information, visit www.principal.com.
About Beacon Research
Beacon Research is an independent research organization founded in 1997. It compiles market intelligence on fixed annuity products for subscribers to its web-based systems at www.annuitynexus.com. Carriers access these systems to support product development, rate setting and competition research. Distributors use them for product analysis and selection. The new AnnuityNexus Sales Support System is an important resource for retention teams and sales desk staff throughout the distribution chain. Beacon's new Fixed Annuity Premium Study is the first to track these sales at the product level, with analysis by Milliman USA. Beacon also licenses information and software tools to other platforms, including websites for sales representatives, AnnuityNet's annuity automation platform, and LifeLink Corporation's insurance sales platform. Beacon's fixed annuity benchmark series -- the industry's first -- is available through Ibbotson Associates. Directly and through strategic alliances, Beacon information can be accessed by hundreds of financial institutions and distributors.
Note 1: A higher rating by a particular firm does not constitute an endorsement of the rate insurer by the ratings firm.
Note 2: "The Principal Financial Group" and "The Principal" are registered service marks of Principal Financial Services, Inc., a member of the Principal Financial Group.
Note 3: CFO Magazine, April/May 2003, based on total plans served in 2002 by insurance companies, banks and investment firms.
Note 4: As of June 30, 2003
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