Future policy benefits for other contract liabilities are generally equal to the present value of expected future payments based on the Company’s experience, except for example, certain group insurance coverages for which future policy benefits are equal to gross unearned premium reserves. The interest rates used in the determination of the present values range from 0.2% to 6.5%.
The table below summarizes the changes in general account liabilities for guarantees. The liabilities for GMDB and GMIB are included in “Future policy benefits” and the related changes in the liabilities are included in “Policyholders’ benefits.” GMAB, GMWB and GMIWB are accounted for as embedded derivatives and are recorded at fair value within “Future policy benefits.” Changes in the fair value of these derivatives, including changes in the Company’s own risk of non-performance, along with any fees attributed or payments made relating to the derivative, are recorded in “Realized investment gains (losses), net.” See Note 6 for additional information regarding the methodology used in determining the fair value of these embedded derivatives. The Company maintains a portfolio of derivative investments that serve as a partial hedge of the risks associated with these products, for which the changes in fair value are also recorded in “Realized investment gains (losses),
net.” This portfolio of derivative investments does not qualify for hedge accounting treatment under U.S. GAAP. Additionally, the Company externally reinsures the guaranteed benefit features associated with certain contracts. See Note 14 for further information regarding the external reinsurance arrangement.
(1)Incurred guarantee benefits include the portion of assessments established as additions to reserves as well as changes in estimates affecting the reserves. Also includes changes in the fair value of features considered to be derivatives.
The GMWB features provide the contractholder with access to a guaranteed remaining balance if the account value is reduced to zero through a combination of market declines and withdrawals. The guaranteed remaining balance is generally equal to the protected value under the contract, which is initially established as the greater of the account value or cumulative deposits when withdrawals commence, less cumulative withdrawals. The contractholder also has the option, after a specified time period, to reset the guaranteed remaining balance to the then current account value, if greater. The contractholder accesses the guaranteed remaining balance through payments over time, subject to maximum annual limits. The GMWB liability is calculated as the present value of future expected payments to customers less the present value of future expected rider fees attributable to the embedded derivative feature.
Effective April 1, 2015, the Company entered into an agreement with Union Hamilton Reinsurance, Ltd. (“Union Hamilton”) an external counterparty, to reinsure approximately 50% of the Prudential Premier® Retirement Variable Annuity with Highest Daily Lifetime Income (“HDI”) v.3.0 business, a guaranteed benefit feature. This reinsurance agreement covered most new HDI v.3.0 variable annuity business issued between April 1, 2015 and December 31, 2016 on a quota share basis, with Union Hamilton’s cumulative quota share amounting to $2.9 billion of new rider premiums as of December 31, 2016. Reinsurance on business subject to this agreement remains in force for the duration of the underlying annuity contracts. New sales subsequent to December 31, 2016 are not covered by this external reinsurance agreement. This reinsurance agreement is accounted for as an embedded derivative.
In January 2013, the Company acquired the Hartford Life Business through reinsurance transactions with three subsidiaries of Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. (“Hartford Financial”). Under the related agreements, the Company provided reinsurance for approximately 700,000 life insurance policies with net retained face amount in force of approximately $141 billion. The Company acquired the general account business through a coinsurance arrangement and, for certain types of general account policies, a modified coinsurance arrangement. The Company acquired the separate account business through a modified coinsurance arrangement. In May 2018, Hartford Financial sold a group of operating subsidiaries, which included two of the Company’s counterparties to these reinsurance arrangements. There was no impact to the terms, rights or obligations of the Company, or operation of these reinsurance arrangements, as a result of this change in control of such counterparties. In January 2021, there was a definitive agreement announced to subsequently sell the two counterparties mentioned above. We anticipate there will be no impact to the terms, rights or obligations of the Company, or operation of these reinsurance arrangements, as a result of this change in control of such counterparties.
In 2006, the Company acquired the variable annuity business of The Allstate Corporation (“Allstate”) through a reinsurance transaction. The reinsurance arrangements with Allstate include a coinsurance arrangement associated with the general account liabilities assumed and a modified coinsurance arrangement associated with the separate account liabilities assumed. The reinsurance payable, which represents the Company’s obligation under the modified coinsurance arrangement, is netted with the reinsurance receivable in the Consolidated Statements of Financial Position. In January 2021, Allstate announced a definitive agreement to sell the Company’s counterparty to these reinsurance arrangements. We anticipate there will be no impact to the terms, rights or obligations of the Company, or operation of these reinsurance arrangements, as a result of this change in control of such counterparty.
Excluding the reinsurance recoverable associated with the acquisition of the Hartford Life Business and the retirement business of CIGNA, four major reinsurance companies account for approximately 59% of the reinsurance recoverable at December 31, 2020. The Company periodically reviews the financial condition of its reinsurers, amounts recoverable therefrom, and unearned reinsurance premium, in order to reduce its exposure to loss from reinsurer insolvencies. Any expected credit losses are reflected in the CECL allowance, after considering any collateral the Company obtained in the form of a trust, letter of credit, or funds withheld arrangement. See Note 2 for additional details regarding CECL. Under the Company’s longevity reinsurance transactions, the Company obtains collateral from its counterparties to mitigate counterparty default risk.
On December 18, 2001, the date of demutualization, PICA established a closed block for certain in-force participating insurance policies and annuity products, along with corresponding assets used for the payment of benefits and policyholders’ dividends on these products, (collectively the “Closed Block”), and ceased offering these participating products. The recorded assets and liabilities were allocated to the Closed Block at their historical carrying amounts. The Closed Block forms the principal component of the Closed Block division. See Note 22 for financial information on the Closed Block. The insurance policies and annuity contracts comprising the Closed Block are managed in accordance with the Plan of Reorganization approved by the New Jersey Department of Banking and Insurance (“NJDOBI”) on December 18, 2001, and PICA is directly obligated for the insurance policies and annuity contracts in the Closed Block.
The policies included in the Closed Block are specified individual life insurance policies and individual annuity contracts that were in force on the date of demutualization and for which PICA is currently paying or expects to pay experience-based policy dividends. Assets have been allocated to the Closed Block in an amount that has been determined to produce cash flows which, together with revenues from policies included in the Closed Block, are expected to be sufficient to support obligations and liabilities relating to these policies, including provision for payment of benefits, certain expenses and taxes and to provide for continuation of the policyholder dividend scales in effect in 2000, assuming experience underlying such scales continues. To the extent that, over time, cash flows from the assets allocated to the Closed Block and claims and other experience related to the Closed Block are, in the aggregate, more or less favorable than what was assumed when the Closed Block was established, total dividends paid to Closed Block policyholders may be greater than or less than the total dividends that would have been paid to these policyholders if the policyholder dividend scales in effect in 2000 had been continued. Any cash flows in excess of amounts assumed will be available for distribution over time to Closed Block policyholders and will not be available to shareholders. If the Closed Block has insufficient funds to make guaranteed policy benefit payments, such payments will be made from PICA’s assets outside of the Closed Block. The Closed Block will continue in effect as long as any policy in the Closed Block remains in force unless, with the consent of the New Jersey insurance regulator, it is terminated earlier.
The differences between income taxes expected at the U.S. federal statutory income tax rate of 21% applicable for 2020, 2019 and 2018, and the reported income tax expense (benefit) are summarized as follows:
The effective tax rate is the ratio of “Total income tax expense (benefit)” divided by “Income before income taxes and equity in earnings of operating joint ventures.” The Company’s effective tax rate for fiscal years 2020, 2019 and 2018 was 25.1%, 18.6% and 17.0%, respectively. The following is a description of items that had the most significant impact on the difference between the Company’s statutory U.S. federal income tax rate of 21% applicable for 2020, 2019 and 2018, and the Company’s effective tax rate during the periods presented:
Non-Taxable Investment Income. The U.S. Dividends Received Deduction (“DRD”) reduces the amount of dividend income subject to U.S. tax and accounts for most of the non-taxable investment income shown in the table above. More specifically, the U.S. DRD constitutes $109 million of the total $228 million of 2020 non-taxable investment income, $122 million of the total $270 million of 2019 non-taxable investment income, and $127 million of the total $250 million of 2018 non-taxable investment income. The DRD for the current period was estimated using information from 2019, current year investment results, and current year’s equity market performance. The actual current year DRD can vary based on factors such as, but not limited to, changes in the amount of dividends received that are eligible for the DRD, changes in the amount of distributions received from fund investments, changes in the account balances of variable life and annuity contracts, and the Company’s taxable income before the DRD.
2018 Industry Issue Resolution (IIR). In August 2018, the IRS released a Directive to provide guidance on the tax reserving for guaranteed benefits within variable annuity contracts and principle-based reserves on certain life insurance contracts. Adopting the methodology specified in the Directive resulted in an accelerated deduction for the Company’s 2017 tax return that would have otherwise been deductible in future years. Prior to the adoption of this Directive, the Company accounted for these future deductions as deferred tax assets measured using the current 21% corporate income tax rate. Upon adoption of the Directive, the tax benefits were revalued using the 35% tax rate applicable for the 2017 tax year and resulted in a reduction in income tax expense of $198 million in 2018.
The CARES Act. On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act”) was enacted into law. One provision of the CARES Act amends the Tax Act of 2017 and allows companies with net operating losses (“NOLs”) originating in 2020, 2019 or 2018 to carry back those losses for up to five years. For 2020, the Company has recorded an income tax benefit of $149 million and $51 million from carrying the estimated 2020 NOL and 2018 NOL back to tax years that have a 35% tax rate.
The Treasury Department and the IRS also issued Proposed Regulations on July 20, 2020 which would require that, if a high-tax exception election is made with respect to GILTI in any year, an election having the same effect must also be made with regard to income taxed under Subpart F of the Tax Code. Such an election under Subpart F of the Tax Code would apply to the Full Inclusion election made by the Company for its insurance operations in Brazil, thereby increasing the tax rate applied to our Brazil insurance operations. The Proposed Regulations will be effective for taxable years beginning after they are issued in final form.
(4)Expires in 2030. These relate to foreign non-general basket tax credits.
During the first and second quarters of 2018, respectively, the Company determined that the earnings of its Polish and Italian insurance operations would be repatriated to the United States; accordingly, these earnings were not considered indefinitely reinvested, and the Company recognized an income tax expense of $10 million in “Income (loss) before equity in earnings of operating joint ventures” during 2018. During the first and fourth quarters of 2018, the Company determined that a portion of the earnings of its Korean insurance operation would be repatriated to the United States; accordingly, a portion of these earnings were not considered indefinitely reinvested, and the Company recognized an income tax expense of $14 million in “Income (loss) before equity in earnings of operating joint ventures” during 2018. The Company made no changes with respect to its repatriation assumptions in 2019. During the second and third quarters of 2020, respectively, the Company determined that the earnings of its Korean and Taiwan insurance operations would be repatriated to the United States; accordingly, these earnings were not considered indefinitely reinvested, and the Company recognized an income tax expense of $132 million in “Income (loss) before equity in earnings of operating joint ventures” during 2020. During the second quarter of 2020, the Company changed the permanent investment assertion for Europrisa Management Company S.A (Luxembourg) due to a plan to liquidate the company, which gave rise to an immaterial amount of income tax expense during 2020.
The following table sets forth the undistributed earnings of foreign subsidiaries, where the Company assumes indefinite reinvestment of such earnings and for which, in 2020, 2019, and 2018, U.S. deferred taxes have not been provided, and for which foreign deferred withholding taxes have not been provided. The net tax liability that may arise if the 2020 earnings were remitted which includes any foreign exchange impacts, is immaterial.
The following table reconciles the total amount of unrecognized tax benefits at the beginning and end of the periods indicated:
Listed below are the tax years that remain subject to examination, by major tax jurisdiction, as of December 31, 2020:
The Company’s affiliates in South Korea file separate tax returns and are subject to audits by the local taxing authority. The general statute of limitations is five years from when the return is filed. During 2020, the Korean tax authority substantially completed a routine tax audit of Prudential of Korea for 2017, 2016, and 2015 tax years. These activities are expected to have no material impact on the Company’s 2020, 2019 or 2018 results.
The table below presents the Company’s short-term debt at December 31, for the years indicated as follows:
(3)Includes Prudential Financial debt of $424 million and $1,204 million at December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.
NJDOBI permits PICA to pledge collateral to the FHLBNY in an amount of up to 5% of its prior year-end statutory net admitted assets, excluding separate account assets. Based on PICA’s statutory net admitted assets as of December 31, 2019, the 5% limitation equates to a maximum amount of eligible assets of $7.3 billion and an estimated maximum borrowing capacity (after taking into account required collateralization levels) of approximately $6.6 billion. Nevertheless, FHLBNY borrowings are subject to the FHLBNY’s discretion and to the availability of qualifying assets at PICA.
Prudential Retirement Insurance and Annuity Company (“PRIAC”) is a member of the Federal Home Loan Bank of Boston (“FHLBB”). Membership allows PRIAC access to collateralized advances which will be classified in “Short-term debt” or “Long-term debt,” depending on the maturity date of the obligation. PRIAC’s membership in FHLBB requires the ownership of member stock and borrowings from FHLBB require the purchase of activity-based stock in an amount between 3.0% and 4.5% of outstanding borrowings, depending on the maturity date of the obligation. All FHLBB stock purchased by PRIAC is classified as restricted general account investments within “Other invested assets,” and the carrying value of these investments was $6 million and $6 million as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively. As of December 31, 2020, PRIAC had no advances outstanding under the FHLBB facility.
Under Connecticut state insurance law, without the prior consent of the Connecticut Insurance Department, the amount of assets insurers may pledge to secure debt obligations is limited to the lesser of 5% of prior-year statutory admitted assets or 25% of prior-year statutory surplus, resulting in a maximum borrowing capacity for PRIAC under the FHLBB facility of approximately $265 million as of December 31, 2020.
In addition to the above credit facilities, the Company had access to $219 million of certain other lines of credit at December 31, 2020, of which $175 million was for the sole use of certain real estate separate accounts. The separate account facilities include loan-to-value ratio requirements and other financial covenants, and recourse on obligations under these facilities is limited to the assets of the applicable separate account. At December 31, 2020, $31 million of these credit facilities were used. The Company also has access to uncommitted lines of credit from financial institutions.
In November 2013, Prudential Financial entered into a ten-year put option agreement with a Delaware trust upon the completion of the sale of $1.5 billion of trust securities by that Delaware trust in a Rule 144A private placement. The trust invested the proceeds from the sale of the trust securities in a portfolio of principal and interest strips of U.S. Treasury securities. The put option agreement provides Prudential Financial the right to sell to the trust at any time up to $1.5 billion of 4.419% senior notes due November 2023 and receive in exchange a corresponding amount of U.S. Treasury securities held by the trust. In return, the Company agreed to pay a semi-annual put premium to the trust at a rate of 1.777% per annum applied to the unexercised portion of the put option. The put option agreement with the trust provides Prudential Financial with a source of liquid assets.
In May 2020, Prudential Financial entered into a ten-year facility agreement with a Delaware trust upon the completion of the sale of $1.5 billion of trust securities by that Delaware trust in a Rule 144A private placement. The trust invested the proceeds from the sale of the trust securities in a portfolio of principal and/or interest strips of U.S. Treasury securities. The facility agreement provides Prudential Financial the right to issue and sell to the trust from time to time up to $1.5 billion of 2.850% senior notes due May 15, 2030 and receive in exchange a corresponding amount of the U.S. Treasury securities held by the trust. In return, the Company agreed to pay a semi-annual facility fee to the trust at a rate of 2.175% per annum applied to the maximum amount of senior notes that the Company could issue and sell to the trust. Similar to the Company’s put option agreement, the facility agreement with the trust provides Prudential Financial with a source of liquid assets.
The right to issue senior notes described above will be exercised automatically in full upon the Company’s failure to make certain payments to the trust, such as paying the facility fee or reimbursing the trust for its expenses, if the Company’s failure to pay is not cured within 30 days, and upon an event involving its bankruptcy. The Company is also required to exercise this issuance right if its consolidated stockholders’ equity, calculated in accordance with U.S. GAAP but excluding AOCI, falls below $9.0 billion, subject to adjustment in certain cases. Prior to any involuntary exercise of the issuance right, the Company has the right to repurchase any of its senior notes then held by the trust in exchange for a corresponding amount of U.S. Treasury securities. Finally, Prudential Financial may redeem any outstanding senior notes, in whole or in part, prior to February 15, 2030, at a redemption price equal to the greater of par or a make-whole price, or thereafter, at par.
(1)Ranges of interest rates are for the year ended December 31, 2020.
(2)Includes $0 and $43 million of debt denominated in foreign currency at December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.
(3)Includes $29 million and $53 million of debt denominated in foreign currency at December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.
Under its shelf registration statement the Company maintains a Medium-Term Notes Program and an InterNotes® Retail Notes Program which have authorized issuance capacities of $20.0 billion and $5.0 billion, respectively.
The table below presents the Company’s senior notes and mortgage debt balances as of December 31, 2020 for the years indicated as follows:
(1)Includes $400 million of notes from current portion of long-term debt.
Medium-Term Notes Program. The outstanding balance of this program increased by $0.3 billion from December 31, 2019. The increase was due to the issuance of $0.5 billion of medium-term notes with an interest rate of 1.5% maturing in March 2026, $0.5 billion of notes with an interest rate of 2.1% maturing in 2030, and $0.5 billion of notes with an interest rate of 3.0% maturing in 2040, offset by $1.2 billion of maturities in June and November 2020. As of December 31, 2020, $0.4 billion of the outstanding balance of this program is included in current portion of long-term debt.
Mortgage Debt. Mortgage debt decreased by $128 million from December 31, 2019, primarily due to $200 million of prepayment activity, offset by new borrowings in 2020 of $71 million and foreign exchange fluctuations of $2 million. As of December 31, 2020, the Company’s subsidiaries had long-term mortgage debt of $409 million that has recourse only to real estate property held for investment by those subsidiaries, of which $128 million is included in current portion of long-term debt.
(2)Includes $0.5 billion of notes from current portion of long-term debt.
(3)The current financing capacity available under the facility is $3.5 billion but can be increased to a maximum potential size of $4.5 billion.
The surplus note facility listed under “Other Notes” in the table above reflects a financing facility that Prudential Legacy Insurance Company of New Jersey (“PLIC”) has entered into with certain external counterparties and a special-purpose affiliate, pursuant to which PLIC may, at its option, issue and sell to the affiliate up to $4.0 billion in aggregate principal amount of surplus notes, in return for an equal principal amount of credit-linked notes. The credit-linked notes are redeemable for cash upon the occurrence of a liquidity stress event affecting PLIC, and external counterparties have agreed to fund these payments in return for a fee. Upon issuance, PLIC would hold any credit-linked notes as assets to support future statutory surplus needs within PLIC.
Prudential Financial’s junior subordinated notes outstanding are considered hybrid securities that receive enhanced equity treatment from the rating agencies. These notes outstanding, along with their key terms, are as follows:
The master trust’s payment obligations under each of the asset-backed notes are secured by corresponding payment obligations of a third-party financial institution and a portfolio of specified assets that have an aggregate value at least equal to the principal amount of the applicable asset-backed note. The principal amount of each asset-backed note is payable to PRIAC in cash at any time upon demand by PRIAC or, if not repaid earlier, at maturity. Each of the limited recourse notes obligates Prudential Financial to reimburse the applicable third-party financial institution for any principal payments received on the corresponding asset-backed note, but there is no obligation to reimburse any portion of a principal payment that is needed by PRIAC to pay then current claims to its policyholders. Each limited recourse note bears interest at a rate equal to the rate on the corresponding asset-backed note, plus an amount representing fees payable to the applicable third-party financial institution. As of December 31, 2020, no principal payments have been received or are currently due on the asset-backed notes and, as a result, there was no payment obligation under the limited recourse notes. Accordingly, the notes are not reflected in the Consolidated Financial Statements as of December 31, 2020.
In order to modify exposure to interest rate and currency exchange rate movements, the Company utilizes derivative instruments, primarily interest rate swaps, in conjunction with some of its debt issues. The impact of these derivative instruments is not reflected in the rates presented in the tables above. For those derivative instruments that qualify for hedge accounting treatment, interest expense was $2 million, less than $1 million, and $1 million for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively. See Note 5 for additional information on the Company’s use of derivative instruments.
The Company has funded and non-funded non-contributory defined benefit pension plans (“Pension Benefits”), which cover substantially all of its employees. For some employees, benefits are based on final average earnings and length of service (the “traditional formula”), while benefits for other employees are based on an account balance that takes into consideration age, length of service and earnings during their career (the “cash balance formula”). At December 31, 2020, approximately 77% of the Company’s Pension Benefits relate to its domestic qualified pension plan, which initially determined benefits based on the traditional formula. Effective January 1, 2001, active domestic employees covered under this plan were given the option to convert from the traditional formula to the cash balance formula, and all new domestic employees began accruing benefits under the cash balance formula. As of December 31, 2020, approximately 68% and 32% of the benefit obligation under this plan relates to participants under the traditional formula and cash balance formula, respectively. At December 31, 2020, the vast majority of active employees under this plan are accruing benefits under the cash balance formula.
The Company provides certain health care and life insurance benefits for its retired employees, their beneficiaries and covered dependents (“Other Postretirement Benefits”). The health care plan is contributory; the life insurance plan is non-contributory. Substantially all of the Company’s U.S. employees may become eligible to receive other postretirement benefits if they retire after age 55 with at least 10 years of service or under certain circumstances after age 50 with at least 20 years of continuous service.
(1)For 2020 and 2019, actuarial losses for pension and other postretirement benefits were primarily driven by a decrease in the discount rate.
Pension benefits for foreign plans comprised 13% and 14% of the ending benefit obligation for both 2020 and 2019, respectively. Foreign pension plans comprised 4% and 5% of the ending fair value of plan assets for both 2020 and 2019, respectively. There are no material foreign postretirement plans.
(2)For 2020, certain employees were provided special termination benefits under non-qualified plans in the form of unreduced early retirement benefits as a result of their participation in the Voluntary Separation Program that was offered to eligible U.S.-based employees in 2019.
(3)For 2019, certain employees were provided special termination benefits in the qualified and non-qualified plans in the form of retirement eligibility bridging as a result of their participation in the Voluntary Separation Program that was offered to eligible U.S.-based employees.
The domestic discount rate used to value the pension and postretirement obligations at December 31, 2020 and December 31, 2019 is based upon the value of a portfolio of Aa-rated investments whose cash flows would be available to pay the benefit obligation’s cash flows when due. The December 31, 2020 portfolio is selected from a compilation of approximately 440 Aa-rated bonds across the full range of maturities. Since yields can vary widely at each maturity point, the Company generally avoids using the highest and lowest yielding bonds at the maturity points, so as to avoid relying on bonds that might be mispriced or misrated. This refinement process generally results in having a distribution from the 10th to 90th percentile. The Aa-rated portfolio is then selected and, accordingly, its value is a measure of the benefit obligation. A single equivalent discount rate is calculated to equate the value of the Aa-rated portfolio to the cash flows for the benefit obligation. The result is rounded to the nearest 5 basis points and the benefit obligation is recalculated using the rounded discount rate.
The investment goal of the domestic pension plan assets is to generate an above benchmark return on a diversified portfolio of stocks, bonds and other investments. The cash requirements of the pension obligation, which include a traditional formula principally representing payments to annuitants and a cash balance formula that allows lump sum payments and annuity payments, are designed to be met by the bonds and short-term investments in the portfolio.
The pension and postretirement plans risk management practices include guidelines for asset concentration, credit rating, liquidity and tax efficiency. The pension and postretirement plans do not invest in leveraged derivatives. Derivatives such as futures contracts are used to reduce transaction costs and change asset concentration, while interest rate swaps and futures are used to adjust duration.
To implement the investment strategy, plan assets are invested in funds that primarily invest in securities that correspond to one of the asset categories under the investment guidelines. However, at any point in time, some of the assets in a fund may be of a different nature than the specified asset category.
Assets held with PICA are in either pooled separate accounts or single client separate accounts. Assets held with a bank are either in common/collective trusts or single client trusts. Pooled separate accounts and common/collective trusts hold assets for multiple investors. Each investor owns a “unit of account.” The asset allocation targets above include the underlying asset mix in the Pooled Separate Accounts and Common/Collective Trusts. Single client separate accounts or trusts hold assets for only one investor, the domestic qualified pension plan, and each security in the fund is treated as individually owned.
The authoritative guidance around fair value established a framework for measuring fair value. Fair value is disclosed using a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value, as described in Note 6.
Insurance Company Pooled Separate Accounts, Common or Collective Trusts, and United Kingdom Insurance Pooled Funds-Insurance company pooled separate accounts are invested via group annuity contracts issued by PICA. Assets are represented by a “unit of account.” The redemption value of those units is based on a per unit value whose value is the result of the accumulated values of underlying investments. The unit of account value is used as a practical expedient to estimate fair value.
Interest Rate Swaps-See Note 6 for a discussion of the valuation methodologies for derivative instruments.
Short-term Investments-Securities are valued initially at cost and thereafter adjusted for amortization of any discount or premium (i.e., amortized cost). Amortized cost approximates fair value.
(3)The contractual net value of the investment of securities lending collateral invested primarily in short-term bond funds is $586 million and $135 million and the liability for securities lending collateral is $586 million and $135 million for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively.
(5)Prior period amounts have been updated to conform to the current year presentation.
(1)Prior period amounts have been updated to conform to the current year presentation
(2)The transfers from level 3 to level 2 are due to the availability of external pricing sources.
(1)This category primarily consists of cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments, payables and receivables and open future contract positions (including fixed income collateral).
(1)The transfers from level 3 to level 2 are due to the availability of external pricing sources.
The Company accrues postemployment benefits for income continuance and health and life benefits provided to former or inactive employees who are not retirees. The net accumulated liability for these benefits at December 31, 2020 and 2019 was $15 million and $1 million, respectively, and is included in “Other liabilities.”
The Company sponsors voluntary savings plans for employees (401(k) plans). The plans provide for salary reduction contributions by employees and matching contributions by the Company of up to 4% of annual salary. The matching contributions by the Company included in “General and administrative expenses” were $82 million, $84 million and $89 million for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively.
As of December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, the Company had 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock authorized but none issued or outstanding.
On the date of demutualization in December 2001, Prudential Financial completed an initial public offering of its Common Stock. The shares of Common Stock issued were in addition to shares of Common Stock the Company distributed to policyholders as part of the demutualization. The Common Stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol “PRU”. In the event of a liquidation, dissolution or winding-up of the Company, holders of Common Stock would be entitled to receive a proportionate share of the net assets of the Company that remain after paying all liabilities and the liquidation preferences of any preferred stock.
(3)In October 2019, the Company issued approximately 5.5 million shares of restricted Common Stock as part of consideration paid for the Assurance IQ acquisition. For additional information about the acquisition, see Note 1.
Additional paid-in capital is primarily comprised of the cumulative excess between: (a) the total cash received by the Company in conjunction with past issuances of Common Stock shares or Common Stock shares reissued from treasury in conjunction with the Company’s stock-based compensation program and (b) the total par value associated with those shares ($.01 per share).
AOCI represents the cumulative OCI items that are reported separate from net income and detailed on the Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income. Each of the components that comprise OCI are described in further detail in Note 2 (Foreign Currency Translation Adjustment and Net Unrealized Investment Gains (Losses)) and Note 18 (Pension and Postretirement Unrecognized Net Periodic Benefit (Cost)). The balance of and changes in each component of AOCI as of and for the years ended December 31, are as follows:
(3)See Note 5 for additional information on cash flow and fair value hedges.
Net Unrealized Investment Gains (Losses) on Available-for-Sale Fixed Maturity Securities on which an OTTI loss had been previously recognized and an allowance for credit losses has been recognized
(2)Represents net unrealized gains (losses) for which an OTTI loss had been previously recognized.
(1)Includes cash flow and fair value hedges. See Note 5 for additional information.
The risk-based capital (“RBC”) ratio is a primary measure by which the Company and its insurance regulators evaluate the capital adequacy of PICA and the Company’s other domestic insurance subsidiaries. RBC is determined by NAIC-prescribed formulas that consider, among other things, risks related to the type and quality of the invested assets, insurance-related risks associated with an insurer’s products and liabilities, interest rate risks and general business risks. Insurers that have less statutory capital than required are considered to have inadequate capital and are subject to varying degrees of regulatory action depending upon the level of capital inadequacy. The Company expects to report RBC ratios as of December 31, 2020 above the regulatory required minimums that would require corrective action and above our “AA” financial strength target levels for both PICA and Prudential Annuities Life Assurance Corporation (“PALAC”).
The following table summarizes certain statutory financial information for the Company’s two largest U.S. insurance subsidiaries for the periods indicated:
All of the Company’s domestic and international insurance subsidiaries have capital and surplus levels that exceed their respective regulatory minimum requirements, and none utilized prescribed or permitted practices that vary materially from the practices prescribed by the NAIC or equivalent regulatory bodies for results reported as of December 31, 2020 and 2019, respectively, or for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018, respectively.
(1)For the year ended December 31, 2020, weighted average shares for basic earnings per share is also used for calculating diluted earnings per share because dilutive shares and dilutive earnings per share are not applicable when a net loss is reported. As a result of the net loss attributable to Prudential Financial available to holders of Common Stock for the year ended December 31, 2020, all potential stock options and compensation programs were considered antidilutive.
Stock options and shares related to deferred and long-term compensation programs that are considered antidilutive are excluded from the computation of diluted earnings per share. Stock options are considered antidilutive based on application of the treasury stock method or in the event of a net loss available to holders of Common Stock. Shares related to deferred and long-term compensation programs are considered antidilutive in the event of a net loss available to holders of Common Stock. For the years ended December 31, the number of stock options and shares related to deferred and long-term compensation programs that were considered antidilutive and were excluded from the computation of diluted earnings per share, weighted for the portion of the period they were outstanding, are as follows:
In September 2009, the Company issued $500 million of surplus notes with an interest rate of 5.36% per annum which were exchangeable at the option of the note holders for shares of Common Stock. In August 2019, as a result of the note holders’ exercise of the exchange option, the Company issued approximately 6.2 million shares of Common Stock at an exchange rate equal to 12.3877 shares of Common Stock per each $1,000 principal amount of surplus notes. The Company’s obligations under the surplus notes are now satisfied. In calculating diluted earnings per share under the if-converted method, for the years ended December 31, 2019 and 2018, the potential shares that would be issued assuming a hypothetical exchange, weighted for the period the notes were outstanding, are added to the denominator, and the related interest expense, net of tax, is excluded from the numerator, if the overall effect is dilutive.
The following table summarizes the compensation cost recognized and the related income tax benefit for stock options, restricted stock units, performance shares and performance units for the years ended December 31:
The total intrinsic value (i.e., market price of the stock less the option exercise price) of employee stock options exercised during the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018 was $13 million, $21 million, and $28 million, respectively. For the Acquisition related awards, the total intrinsic value of employee stock options exercised during the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 were $10 million and $3 million, respectively.
The weighted average remaining contractual term and the aggregate intrinsic value of stock options outstanding and exercisable as of December 31, 2020 is as follows:
(1)Performance share and performance unit awards reflect the target units awarded, reduced for forfeitures and releases to date. The actual number of units to be awarded at the end of each performance period will range between 0% and 125% of the target number of units granted, based upon a measure of the reported performance for the Company relative to stated goals. Performance awards granted to senior management in 2018 include a stated goal related to diversity & inclusion that can modify the performance result by +/- 10%.
(2)Effective October 1, 2019, the Company modified existing performance share and performance unit awards to remove features of the grants that prevent having a mutual understanding of the key terms and conditions of the award between the employee and employer until the grants vested. Consequently, the weighted average grant date fair value as of December 31, 2020 is the closing stock price of Prudential Financial’s common stock as of September 30, 2019. The weighted average grant date fair value as of December 31, 2018 is the closing stock price of Prudential Financial’s common stock as of December 31, 2019.
(3)Represents the difference between the target units granted and the actual units awarded based upon the attainment of performance goals for the Company.
(1)Performance share awards related to the Assurance IQ acquisition reflect the maximum number of units that have been awarded under the terms of the acquisition. The actual number of units that will be awarded at the end of the performance period will range between 0% and 100% of the number of units granted, based upon a predetermined formula of achieving Variable Profits between $900 million and $1,300 million.
The fair market value of restricted stock units, performance shares and performance units released under the Omnibus Incentive Plan for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018 was $191 million, $255 million and $238 million, respectively. The fair market value of restricted stock units for the Acquisition related awards under the Omnibus Incentive Plan for the year ended December 31, 2020 was $2 million. There were no vested restricted stock units or performance shares related to the Acquisition for the year ended December 31, 2019.
Unrecognized compensation cost for stock options under the Omnibus Incentive Plan as of December 31, 2020 was $3 million with a weighted average recognition period of 1.57 years. Unrecognized compensation cost for restricted stock units, performance shares and performance units under the Omnibus Incentive Plan as of December 31, 2020 was $153 million with a weighted average recognition period of 1.68 years. Unrecognized compensation cost for stock options related to the Acquisition as of December 31, 2020 was $30 million with a weighted average recognition period of 2.16 years. Unrecognized
The Company’s tax benefit realized upon vesting of restricted stock units, performance shares and performance units under the Omnibus Incentive Plan for the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018 was $44 million, $52 million and $49 million, respectively. The tax benefit realized upon vesting of restricted stock units and performance shares related to the Acquisition during the year ended December 31, 2020 was $1 million. There were no vested restricted stock units or performance shares related to the Acquisition for the year ended December 31, 2019.
The Company’s policy is to issue shares from Common Stock held in treasury upon exercise of stock options, the release of restricted stock units and performance shares. The Company uses cash to settle performance units. The amount of cash used to settle performance units during the years ended December 31, 2020, 2019 and 2018 was $2 million, $32 million and $29 million, respectively.
The International Businesses develops and distributes individual life insurance, retirement and related products to the mass affluent and affluent markets in Japan and other foreign countries through its Life Planner operations. In addition, similar products are offered through its Gibraltar Life and Other operations to the broad middle income and mass affluent markets across Japan and the Company’s joint ventures in various foreign countries through multiple distribution channels (including banks, independent agencies and Life Consultants).
The Company analyzes the operating performance of each segment using “adjusted operating income.” Adjusted operating income does not equate to “Income (loss) before income taxes and equity in earnings of operating joint ventures” or “Net income (loss)” as determined in accordance with U.S. GAAP but is the measure of segment profit or loss used by the Company’s chief operating decision maker to evaluate segment performance and allocate resources and, consistent with authoritative guidance, is the measure of segment performance presented below. Adjusted operating income is calculated by adjusting each segment’s “Income (loss) before income taxes and equity in earnings of operating joint ventures” for the following items, which are described in greater detail below:
Terminated Hedges of Foreign Currency Earnings. The amounts shown in the table above primarily reflect the impact of an intercompany arrangement between Corporate and Other operations and the International Businesses segment, pursuant to which the non-U.S. dollar-denominated earnings in all countries for a particular year, including its interim reporting periods, are translated at fixed currency exchange rates. The fixed rates are determined in connection with a currency hedging program designed to mitigate the risk that unfavorable rate changes will reduce the segment’s U.S. dollar-equivalent earnings. Pursuant to this program, the Company’s Corporate and Other operations may execute forward currency contracts with third-parties to sell the net exposure of projected earnings from the hedged currency in exchange for U.S. dollars at a specified exchange rate. The maturities of these contracts correspond with the future periods in which the identified non-U.S. dollar-denominated earnings are expected to be generated. These contracts do not qualify for hedge accounting under U.S. GAAP, so the resulting profits or losses are recorded in “Realized investment gains (losses), net.” When the contracts are terminated in the same period that the expected earnings emerge, the resulting positive or negative cash flow effect is included in adjusted operating income.
•The portion of the amortization of DAC, VOBA, unearned revenue reserves and DSI for certain products that is related to net realized investment gains (losses).
•Market value adjustments paid or received upon a contractholder’s surrender of certain of the Company’s annuity products as these amounts mitigate the net realized investment gains or losses incurred upon the disposition of the underlying invested assets.
trends. These amounts represent the impact of those changes on DAC and other costs and reserves, primarily related to variable annuity and variable and universal life products.
Earnings attributable to noncontrolling interests are excluded from adjusted operating income. Earnings attributable to noncontrolling interests represents the portion of earnings from consolidated entities that relates to the equity interests of minority investors, and are reflected on a U.S. GAAP basis as a separate line on the Company’s Consolidated Statements of Operations.
(1)Individual Annuities segment results reflect DAC as if the Individual Annuities business is a stand-alone operation. The elimination of intersegment costs capitalized in accordance with this policy is included in consolidating adjustments within Corporate and Other operations.
(3)Effective second quarter of 2020, the results of POK and the impact of its sale are excluded from the International Businesses and are included in the Divested and Run-off Businesses in Corporate and Other. Effective third quarter of 2020, the results of POT and the impact of its anticipated sale are excluded from the International Businesses and are included in the Divested and Run-off Businesses in Corporate and Other. Prior period amounts have been updated to conform to current period presentation. See Note 1 for additional information.
(5)Represents the immediate impacts in current period results from changes in current market conditions on estimates of profitability, which are excluded from adjusted operating income beginning with the second quarter of 2019.
(1)Assurance IQ was acquired by the Company in October 2019. See Note 1 for additional information.
(2)Effective second quarter of 2020, the results of POK and the impact of its sale are excluded from the International Businesses and are included in the Divested and Run-off Businesses in Corporate and Other. Effective third quarter of 2020, the results of POT and the impact of its anticipated sale are excluded from the International Businesses and are included in the Divested and Run-off Businesses in Corporate and Other. Prior period amounts have been updated to conform to current period presentation. See Note 1 for additional information.
(3)Represents the immediate impacts in current period results from changes in current market conditions on estimates of profitability, which are excluded from adjusted operating income beginning with the second quarter of 2019. The Company had historically recognized these impacts in adjusted operating income.
Segments may also enter into internal derivative contracts with other segments. For adjusted operating income, each segment accounts for the internal derivative results consistent with the manner in which that segment accounts for other similar external derivatives.
The table below presents asset management and service fees, predominantly related to an investment management activities, for the periods indicated:
In the normal course of business, the Company may facilitate securities lending or securities repurchase transactions on behalf of certain client accounts (collectively, “the accounts”). In certain of these arrangements, the Company has provided an indemnification to the accounts to hold them harmless against losses caused by counterparty (i.e., borrower) defaults associated with such transactions facilitated by the Company. In securities lending transactions, collateral is provided by the counterparty to the accounts at the inception of the transaction in an amount at least equal to 102% of the fair value of the loaned securities and the collateral is maintained daily to equal at least 102% of the fair value of the loaned securities. In securities repurchase transactions, collateral is provided by the counterparty to the accounts at the inception of the transaction in an amount at least equal to 95% of the fair value of the securities subject to repurchase and the collateral is maintained daily to equal at least 95% of the fair value of the securities subject to repurchase. The Company is only at risk if the counterparty to the transaction defaults and the value of the collateral held is less than the value of the securities loaned to, or subject to repurchase from, such counterparty. The Company believes the possibility of any payments under these indemnities is remote.
(1)As of December 31, 2020, the accrued liability associated with guarantees includes an allowance for credit losses of $20 million, which is a change of $1 million for the year ended December 31, 2020.
Most of the jurisdictions in which the Company is admitted to transact business require insurers doing business within the jurisdiction to participate in guarantee associations, which are organized to pay contractual benefits owed pursuant to insurance policies issued by impaired, insolvent or failed insurers. These associations levy assessments, up to prescribed limits, on all member insurers in a particular state on the basis of the proportionate share of the premiums written by member insurers in the lines of business in which the impaired, insolvent or failed insurer engaged. Some states permit member insurers to recover
In December 2017, Total Asset Recovery Services, LLC, on behalf of the State of New York, filed a Second Amended Complaint in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of New York, against, among other 19 defendants, Prudential Financial, Inc., The Prudential Insurance Company of America and Prudential Insurance Agency, LLC, alleging that the Company failed to escheat life insurance proceeds in violation of the New York False Claims Act. The second amended complaint seeks injunctive relief, compensatory damages, civil penalties, treble damages, prejudgment interest, attorneys’ fees and costs. In May 2018, defendants filed a motion to dismiss the Second Amended Complaint. In April 2019, defendants’ motion to dismiss the Second Amended Complaint was granted and plaintiff subsequently filed a Notice of Appeal with the New York State Supreme Court, First Department. In December 2020, the New York Supreme Court, First Department, reversed and vacated the judgment of the trial court and granted leave to plaintiff to file a third amended complaint.
In November 2019, a putative class action complaint entitled City of Warren Police and Fire Retirement System v. Prudential Financial, Inc., Charles F. Lowrey and Kenneth Y. Tanji, was filed in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey. The complaint asserts claims for federal securities law violations against PFI, and Charles Lowrey, PFI’s chief executive officer, and Kenneth Tanji, PFI’s chief financial officer, individually, and alleges that: (i) the Company's reserve assumptions failed to account for adversely developing mortality experience in the Individual Life business segment; (ii) the Company's reserves were insufficient to satisfy its future policy benefit liabilities; and (iii) the Company materially understated its liabilities and overstated net income due to flawed assumptions in calculating mortality experience. The putative class includes all purchasers of PFI common stock between February 15, 2019 and August 2, 2019. In March 2020, the court issued an order consolidating this action with Donald P. Crawford v. PFI, et al. under the caption In re Prudential Financial, Inc. Securities Litigation. In June 2020, plaintiffs filed an amended complaint and added Robert M. Falzon, PFI’s vice chairman, as an individual defendant. In August 2020, the Company filed a motion to dismiss the amended complaint. In December 2020, the court issued an order granting defendants’ motion to dismiss the amended complaint with prejudice and plaintiff subsequently filed, in January 2021, a Notice of Appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
In September 2020, a shareholder derivative complaint entitled Pekin Police Pension Fund, Derivatively on Behalf of Prudential Financial, Inc. v. Charles F. Lowrey, et al., was filed in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey (the “Derivative Complaint”) against PFI as a “nominal” defendant, PFI’s chairman and chief executive officer, vice chairman, chief financial officer, certain former officers of PFI, and all of the current outside directors of PFI’s Board. The Derivative Complaint asserts claims for federal securities law violations, breach of fiduciary duty, waste of corporate assets, and unjust enrichment, and alleges that: (i) the Company's reserve assumptions failed to account for adversely developing mortality experience in the Individual Life business segment; (ii) the Company's reserves were insufficient to satisfy its future policy benefit liabilities; (iii) the Company materially understated its liabilities and overstated net income due to flawed assumptions in calculating mortality experience; and (iv) the individual defendants breached their duty of care and loyalty to the Company by allowing the alleged improper activity. In December 2020, the Court issued an order substituting Donel Davidson for Pekin Police Pension Fund as the named plaintiff.
enrichment, and alleges that: (i) the Company's reserve assumptions failed to account for adversely developing mortality experience in the Individual Life business segment; (ii) the Company's reserves were insufficient to satisfy its future policy benefit liabilities; (iii) the Company materially understated its liabilities and overstated net income due to flawed assumptions in calculating mortality experience; and (iv) the individual defendants had irreconcilable conflicts of interest and breached their duties of candor, loyalty, oversight and supervision.
part, and denying in part, defendants' motions to dismiss. The court dismissed certain of the Funds' claims, including those alleging fraud based on offering material statements; New Jersey RICO; and express breach of contract. The court upheld certain of the Funds' claims, including those alleging fraud based on false LIBOR submissions to the British Bankers’ Association; negligent misrepresentation; unjust enrichment; and breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. Following the August 2015 decision, granting in part defendants' motions to dismiss, in September 2015, Prudential filed the following LIBOR complaints: (i) in the Southern District of New York, captioned Prudential Investment Portfolios 2 et al. v. Barclays Bank PLC, et al. (the “New York Complaint”), naming as defendants Barclays Bank PLC, Barclays Capital Inc., Barclays PLC, Citibank, N.A., Citigroup Funding Inc., Credit Suisse AG, Credit Suisse Group AG, Credit Suisse (USA) Inc., Deutsche Bank AG, HSBC Bank plc, HSBC Holdings PLC, JPMorgan Chase & Co., JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., Royal Bank of Canada, and The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC. These defendants were dismissed from the original LIBOR action on jurisdictional grounds. The New York complaint reasserts the causes of action brought in the original LIBOR action; and (ii) in the Western district of North Carolina, captioned Prudential Investment Portfolios 2 et al. v. Bank of America Corporation et al. (the “North Carolina Complaint”), naming as defendants Bank of America Corporation and Bank of America, N.A. These defendants were dismissed from the original LIBOR action on jurisdictional grounds. The North Carolina Complaint reasserts the causes of action brought in the original LIBOR action. Both the New York Complaint and the North Carolina Complaint have been transferred for pre-trial purposes to the LIBOR multi-district litigation presided over by Judge Buchwald in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. In May 2016, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals vacated the district court’s dismissal of the LIBOR plaintiffs’ antitrust claims and remanded to the district court the question of whether plaintiffs possess standing as “efficient enforcers” of applicable antitrust laws. In July 2016, defendants filed a joint motion to dismiss all antitrust claims based on lack of standing and lack of personal jurisdiction. In December 2016, the motion was granted in part and denied in part. In January 2017, the United States Supreme Court denied defendants’ petition for certiorari. In February 2017, the court clarified its December 2016 order, holding that antitrust claims only exist against panel banks, not their affiliates. This clarification resulted in the Funds’ New Jersey antitrust claims being dismissed for lack of personal jurisdiction. The Funds antitrust claims in the New York and North Carolina actions remain pending. In July 2017, the Funds obtained an entry of judgment on the New Jersey antitrust claims dismissed on personal jurisdiction grounds. In July 2017, the Funds filed with the Second Circuit Court an appeal from the dismissal of their New Jersey anti-trust claims. In June 2019, the court issued two orders approving stipulations dismissing with prejudice Prudential’s claims against Citigroup Inc., Citibank, N.A., Citigroup Funding Inc., and Citigroup Global Markets Inc. In December 2019, the court issued two orders approving stipulations dismissing with prejudice Prudential’s claims against HSBC Holdings PLC, HSBC Bank PLC, HSBC Finance Corp., HSBC Securities (USA) Inc., and HSBC USA Inc. In May 2020, the court issued two orders approving stipulations dismissing with prejudice Prudential’s claims against Barclays Bank PLC, Barclays Capital Inc., and Barclays PLC. In August 2020, the court issued two orders approving stipulations dismissing with prejudice, Prudential’s claims against Deutsche Bank AG. In October 2020, the court issued orders approving stipulations dismissing with prejudice, Prudential’s claims against JPMorgan Chase & Co., JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., and J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, f/k/a/ J.P. Morgan Securities Inc., Bank of America Corporation, Bank of America, N.A., and Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith Inc., f/k/a Banc of America Securities LLC.
The Company’s litigation and regulatory matters are subject to many uncertainties, and given their complexity and scope, their outcome cannot be predicted. It is possible that the Company’s results of operations or cash flow in a particular quarterly or annual period could be materially affected by an ultimate unfavorable resolution of pending litigation and regulatory matters depending, in part, upon the results of operations or cash flow for such period. In light of the unpredictability of the Company’s litigation and regulatory matters, it is also possible that in certain cases an ultimate unfavorable resolution of one or more pending litigation or regulatory matters could have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position. Management believes, however, that, based on information currently known to it, the ultimate outcome of all pending litigation and regulatory matters, after consideration of applicable reserves and rights to indemnification, is not likely to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position.
(1)Quarterly earnings per share amounts may not add to the full year amounts due to the averaging of shares.
On February 4, 2021, Prudential Financial’s Board of Directors authorized the Company to repurchase, at management’s discretion, up to $1.5 billion of its outstanding Common Stock during the period from January 1, 2021 through December 31, 2021.