Lincoln National Corp (LNC) 2025 Q3 法說會逐字稿

Hello, and thank you for standing by. My name is Tiffany, and I will be your conference operator today. At this time, I would like to welcome everyone to the Lincoln Financial third-quarter 2025 earnings webcast. (Operator Instructions)

您好，感謝您的耐心等待。我叫蒂芬妮，今天我將擔任你們的會議接線生。此時此刻，我謹代表林肯金融公司歡迎各位參加 2025 年第三季財報網路直播。（操作說明）

I would now like to turn the call over to Tina Madon, Head of Investor Relations. Tina, please go ahead.

現在我將把電話交給投資者關係主管蒂娜·馬頓。蒂娜，請繼續。

Thank you. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to our third-quarter earnings call. We appreciate your interest in Lincoln. Our quarterly earnings press release, earnings supplement, and statistical supplement can all be found on the Investor Relations page of our website, www.lincolnfinancial.com. These documents include reconciliations of the non-GAAP measures used on today's call including adjusted income from operations and adjusted income from operations available to common stockholders, or adjusted operating income to the most comparable GAAP measures.

謝謝。各位早安，歡迎參加我們的第三季財報電話會議。感謝您對林肯汽車的關注。我們的季度獲利新聞稿、獲利補充資料和統計補充資料均可在本公司網站 www.lincolnfinancial.com 的投資者關係頁面找到。這些文件包括今天電話會議上使用的非GAAP指標（包括調整後營業收入和歸屬於普通股股東的調整後營業收入，或調整後營業收入）與最接近的GAAP指標的調節表。

Before we begin, I want to remind you that any statements made during today's call regarding expectations, future actions, trends in our businesses, prospective services or products, future performance or financial results, including those relating to deposits, expenses, income from operations, free cash flow or free cash flow conversion ratios, share repurchases, liquidity and capital resources, are forward-looking statements under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.

在開始之前，我想提醒各位，今天電話會議中所有關於預期、未來行動、業務趨勢、未來服務或產品、未來業績或財務結果的陳述，包括與存款、支出、營業收入、自由現金流或自由現金流轉換率、股票回購、流動性和資本資源相關的陳述，均屬於 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革》法案規定的前瞻性陳述。

These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from our current expectations. These risks and uncertainties include those described in the cautionary statement disclosures in our earnings release issued earlier this morning as well as those detailed in our 2024 annual report on Form 10-K, most recent quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, and from time to time, in our other filings with the SEC.

這些前瞻性陳述涉及風險和不確定性，可能導致我們的實際結果與我們目前的預期有重大差異。這些風險和不確定性包括我們今天早上發布的盈利報告中披露的警示性聲明中描述的風險和不確定性，以及我們在 2024 年 10-K 表格年度報告、最近的 10-Q 表格季度報告以及我們不時向美國證券交易委員會提交的其他文件中詳細描述的風險和不確定性。

These forward-looking statements are made only as of today, and we undertake no obligation to update or revise any of them to reflect events or circumstances that occur after today. Presenting this morning are Ellen Cooper, Chairman, President and CEO; and Chris Neczypor, Chief Financial Officer. After their prepared remarks, we'll address your questions.

這些前瞻性聲明僅代表截至今日的觀點，我們不承擔任何義務更新或修改其中任何一項，以反映今日之後發生的事件或情況。今天早上發言的是董事長、總裁兼執行長艾倫·庫柏和財務長克里斯·內齊波爾。在他們發言結束後，我們將回答你們的問題。

Let me now turn the call over to Ellen. Ellen?

現在我把電話轉給艾倫。艾倫？

Thank you, Tina, and good morning, everyone. We appreciate you joining us. We delivered strong financial results in the third quarter, marking our fifth consecutive quarter of year-over-year growth in adjusted operating income and underscoring the broad-based momentum and disciplined execution as we accelerate our strategic priorities.

謝謝你，蒂娜，大家早安。感謝您的參與。我們在第三季度取得了強勁的財務業績，連續第五個季度實現了調整後營業收入同比增長，這凸顯了我們在加速推進戰略重點方面所取得的廣泛進展和嚴謹執行。

We have remained focused and consistent in advancing our vision for Lincoln, and this quarter is another proof point. Each of our four businesses continued to make measurable progress against our transformation road map, translating strategy into results, and contributing to the strong fundamentals that are reshaping the company into a more agile, scalable, and growth-focused enterprise with durable earnings power and a clear path to building long-term shareholder value.

我們始終專注於推進林肯市的願景，本季再次證明了這一點。我們的四大業務部門均繼續按照轉型路線圖取得可衡量的進展，將策略轉化為成果，並為公司打造強勁的基本面做出貢獻，使公司成為一家更靈活、更具可擴展性、更注重增長的企業，擁有持久的盈利能力和清晰的長期股東價值創造路徑。

The core tenets of foundational capital, enhanced operational efficiency, and a strategy for profitable growth are increasingly evident in our results. We're evolving the direction of the organization with a clear focus on increasing our risk-adjusted return on capital, reducing the volatility of our results, and growing our franchise. And we're starting to see the benefits of those actions.

基礎資本、提高營運效率和實現獲利成長策略的核心原則在我們的業績中越來越明顯。我們正在調整組織的發展方向，明確地專注於提高風險調整後的資本回報率、降低績效波動以及擴大業務規模。我們開始看到這些措施帶來的好處。

Our capital position remains well in excess of our 20-percentage point RBC buffer, and we have made significant enhancements to optimize our operating model, creating a more efficient and nimble organization. Our businesses have made notable progress on strategies to shift to products and segments with higher margins, more stable cash flow profiles, and greater capital efficiency.

我們的資本狀況仍然遠遠超過我們 20 個百分點的 RBC 緩衝，我們已經進行了重大改進以優化我們的營運模式，從而創建了一個更有效率、更靈活的組織。我們的業務在向利潤率更高、現金流更穩定、資本效率更高的產品和細分市場轉型方面取得了顯著進展。

We see meaningful opportunity ahead and are continuing to invest for future growth. Our businesses operate in attractive, expanding markets, where we compete from a position of strength grounded in our trusted brand-leading franchise and clear competitive advantages in distribution, product manufacturing, and customer service. Our trajectory continues to accelerate our track record is increasingly clear. And while our progress won't always be linear, we're confident in the direction we're heading and excited about the path forward.

我們看到了未來巨大的發展機遇，並將繼續投資以實現未來的成長。我們的業務在充滿吸引力且不斷擴張的市場中運營，我們憑藉值得信賴的領先品牌特許經營權以及在分銷、產品製造和客戶服務方面的明顯競爭優勢，在市場中佔據強大的競爭地位。我們的發展軌跡持續加速，我們的業績記錄也越來越清晰。雖然我們的進步不會總是一帆風順，但我們對前進的方向充滿信心，並對未來的道路感到興奮。

I'd like to briefly comment on our annual assumption review, which continues to be a rigorous and comprehensive process encompassing all key assumptions. The outcome this year reflected some puts and takes, resulting in a small favorable impact to adjusted operating income in the quarter, highlighting the continued alignment between our underlying experience and our go-forward expectations.

我想簡要地談談我們的年度假設審查，這仍然是一個嚴格而全面的過程，涵蓋所有關鍵假設。今年的結果反映了一些買賣交易，導致本季調整後的營業收入略有增加，凸顯了我們基本面與未來預期之間的持續一致性。

The process provides a strong foundation for disciplined evaluation and well-structured governance of assumptions. Now turning to our third-quarter performance excluding the impact of our annual assumption review. Each of our businesses generated robust year-over-year results, reflecting continued momentum and execution against our strategic priorities.

這個過程為嚴謹的評估和結構良好的假設治理提供了堅實的基礎。現在來看我們第三季的業績，不包括年度假設審查的影響。我們各項業務均實現了強勁的年成長，反映了我們在策略重點方面持續的發展動能和執​​行力。

Key highlights included Annuities recording earnings growth driven by higher account balances and strong and diversified sales. Life Insurance posted improved earnings supported by stable mortality and operational efficiencies while achieving higher sales driven by executive benefits.

主要亮點包括：年金業務獲利成長，這得益於更高的帳戶餘額和強勁且多元化的銷售。人壽保險業務在穩定的死亡率和營運效率的支撐下實現了獲利成長，同時，高階主管福利也推動了銷售額的成長。

Group Protection delivered earnings that were in line with its prior year record third quarter, healthy premium growth, and broad-based sales growth across market segments and products. Retirement Plan Services delivered higher earnings attributable to increased account balances and produced positive net flows in the quarter.

團體保險業務的獲利與去年同期創紀錄的第三季持平，保費成長穩健，各市場領域和產品均實現了廣泛的銷售成長。退休計劃服務部門的收益因帳戶餘額增加而提高，並且本季度實現了正淨流入。

Now turning to our business results, starting with Annuities. Our Annuities business continued to deliver excellent year-over-year and sequential sales growth, reflecting sustained progress in our strategy to diversify our new business mix. Reported sales reached $4.5 billion, our fourth consecutive quarter of increased sales with our spread-based products, including fixed annuities and RILA, representing 63% of the new business total.

現在來看我們的業務成果，首先是年金業務。我們的年金業務持續保持優異的同比和環比銷售成長，反映出我們在多元化新業務組合策略方面的持續進展。報告顯示，銷售額達到 45 億美元，這是我們基於利差的產品（包括固定年金和 RILA）連續第四個季度實現銷售額成長，佔新業務總額的 63%。

Each of our three core product categories, fixed Rila and variable annuities exceeded $1 billion in sales, supporting our focus on building and sustaining a more balanced product mix supporting our strategic and financial goals with strong profitability and capital efficiency, and underscoring our differentiated ability to capture customer demand.

我們的三大核心產品類別，包括固定年金和可變年金，銷售額均超過 10 億美元，這體現了我們致力於構建和維持更加均衡的產品組合，從而以強勁的盈利能力和資本效率支持我們的戰略和財務目標，並突顯了我們滿足客戶需求的獨特能力。

Our go-to-market strategy, combined with our breadth of products, deep, long-standing distribution relationships, and consultative wholesaler model enables us to broaden our addressable markets and reach more customers seeking to retire with confidence and financial security. Our distribution partners value our customer-centric approach, which equips producers with the insights, tools, and capabilities to deliver the right solutions while enhancing their productivity and ease of doing business.

我們的市場進入策略，加上我們廣泛的產品線、深厚的長期分銷關係以及諮詢式批發商模式，使我們能夠擴大目標市場，並接觸到更多希望安心退休並獲得財務保障的客戶。我們的經銷合作夥伴重視我們以客戶為中心的理念，這種理念使生產商能夠獲得洞察力、工具和能力，從而提供合適的解決方案，同時提高他們的生產力和業務開展的便利性。

As a holistic solutions provider with a product suite that continues to expand, we are positioning our Annuities business for further growth. As a leading product manufacturer, we are delivering innovative new features that are meeting evolving customer needs across various environments, further distinguishing us in the marketplace.

作為一家提供全方位解決方案且產品組合不斷擴展的公司，我們正在為年金業務的進一步成長做好準備。作為領先的產品製造商，我們不斷推出創新功能，以滿足客戶在各種環境下不斷變化的需求，從而進一步提升我們在市場上的競爭力。

Our fixed annuity sales increased by 36% year over year as we leveraged the foundational product and distribution capabilities we built to sustain a consistent and growing presence in the fixed segment. We also continue to invest in our service model to deliver more seamless value-add capabilities to support our customers.

我們的固定年金銷售額年增了 36%，這得益於我們利用已建立的基礎產品和分銷能力，在固定領域維持了持續成長的市場份額。我們將繼續投資於我們的服務模式，以提供更無縫的增值功能來支援我們的客戶。

Additionally, during the quarter, we transitioned to fully retaining the flows from our fixed sales, which will enhance the growth of our spread-based earnings over time. Our RILA sales increased 21% year over year, a sixth consecutive quarter of sequential growth that reflects our ability to differentiate through distinctive and expanded product features and crediting strategies that resonate with customers. Sales volumes of our traditional variable annuities were also up year over year.

此外，本季我們過渡到完全保留固定銷售收入，這將隨著時間的推移促進我們基於價差的收益成長。我們的 RILA 銷售額年增 21%，連續第六個季度實現環比增長，這反映了我們透過獨特且不斷擴展的產品特性和與客戶產生共鳴的信用策略來實現差異化的能力。我們傳統的可變年金銷售額也比去年同期成長了。

Our variable product suite offers a broad array of features and benefits that meet customer needs and remain integral to our overall offering. VAs remain a valuable contributor to our overall product mix, generating strong free cash flow and attractive risk-adjusted returns. In summary, these results demonstrate the success we are achieving in delivering a diversified product mix that meets customers where they are across different life stages, risk tolerances, and economic environments.

我們多樣化的產品組合提供廣泛的功能和優勢，滿足客戶需求，並始終是我們整體產品的重要組成部分。虛擬資產仍然是我們整體產品組合的重要貢獻者，能夠產生強勁的自由現金流和具有吸引力的風險調整後收益。總而言之，這些結果表明，我們在提供多元化產品組合方面取得了成功，能夠滿足不同人生階段、風險承受能力和經濟環境下的客戶的需求。

The strategy to increase the proportion of our spread-based earnings through profitable new business generation translates into more resilient and predictable cash flows over time, while meeting our risk-adjusted return targets and balancing the financial contribution across products. We remain confident in the strategic trajectory within our Annuities business and our ability to leverage our competitive strengths to achieve our profitability objectives.

透過創造獲利的新業務來提高我們基於利差的收益比例的策略，隨著時間的推移，可以轉化為更具韌性和可預測性的現金流，同時實現我們經風險調整後的回報目標，並平衡各產品的財務貢獻。我們對年金業務的策略發展方向以及利用自身競爭優勢來實現獲利目標的能力仍然充滿信心。

Now turning to Life Insurance. As I've mentioned on prior calls, we have taken decisive steps to reposition this business for long-term value creation. We have strategically shifted our new business mix to emphasize products that support our strategic objectives, those with growing addressable markets that offer compelling value propositions for our customers, enable efficient capital deployment, and position us for durable profitable growth.

接下來談談人壽保險。正如我在先前的電話會議中提到的，我們已經採取了果斷措施，重新定位這項業務，以實現長期價值創造。我們對新的業務組合進行了策略性調整，重點是發展那些能夠支持我們戰略目標、擁有不斷增長的潛在市場、能夠為我們的客戶提供具有吸引力的價值主張、能夠有效部署資本並使我們實現持久盈利增長的產品。

This quarter's results reflect the progress we are making as our strategic realignment continues to gain traction. Excluding the impact of our annual assumption review, Life earnings reached $54 million, marking a significant year-over-year improvement. Sales totaled nearly $300 million with executive benefits accounting for two-thirds of that volume, driven by a couple of large cases.

本季的業績反映了我們策略調整持續取得成效所取得的進展。剔除年度假設審查的影響，Life 的收益達到 5,400 萬美元，實現了顯著的同比增長。銷售額總計近 3 億美元，其中高階主管福利佔三分之二，這主要得益於幾筆大筆交易。

In this product category, we have enhanced our competitiveness through targeted product additions and by strengthening our distribution relationships and expanding our service model, enabling us to deliver a strong quarter for executive benefit sales. While we don't expect this level of sales to repeat in the fourth quarter, given the natural variability in large-case activity, we have built the foundational capabilities to support a growing presence in this segment.

在這個產品類別中，我們透過有針對性地增加產品、加強分銷關係和擴展服務模式來增強競爭力，從而實現了高階主管福利銷售的強勁季度業績。雖然考慮到大宗交易活動的自然波動性，我們預計第四季度的銷售額不會再達到這個水平，但我們已經建立了支持在該領域不斷增長的業務的基礎能力。

We are continuing to invest to ensure a long-term growth path and are encouraged by the results we're seeing. Our other life sales were a well-balanced product mix aligned to our targeted strategy. The momentum this quarter reflects the effect of the deliberate actions we've taken over the past several years, optimizing our wholesaler footprint, emphasizing products with more stable cash flows, and enhancing the customer experience.

我們將繼續投資以確保長期成長，並對目前的成果感到鼓舞。我們其他壽險產品的銷售組合均衡，符合我們的目標策略。本季的成長動能反映了我們過去幾年採取的審慎措施的效果，包括優化批發商佈局、重點發展現金流更穩定的產品以及提升客戶體驗。

We are continuing to invest in modernizing our service model and advancing our digital offerings to deliver a more integrated customer experience. Through expanded technology, we are differentiating our capabilities to provide real-time insights to support faster, data-driven decisions, and position us for sustained growth. In the Life business, we are seeing the early impact of our repositioning efforts and remain steadfast in our commitment to enhance and grow this business and realize its full long-term potential.

我們將繼續投資，實現服務模式的現代化，並推動數位化產品的發展，以提供更一體化的客戶體驗。透過擴展技術，我們正在提升自身能力，提供即時洞察，以支援更快、數據驅動的決策，並為持續成長奠定基礎。在人壽保險業務方面，我們已經看到了重新定位努力的初步成效，並將繼續堅定不移地致力於提升和發展這項業務，實現其全部長期潛力。

Next, turning to our Group Protection business. As mentioned earlier, group's earnings were in line with its prior year record third quarter, although modestly below our expectations. Importantly, the core fundamentals of this business remain strong. We continue to execute on our targeted strategy of delivering value across three unique market segments: local, regional, and national; with an ongoing strategic focus on repositioning this business for sustainable profitable growth, transforming how we operate and delivering reliable quality customer service.

接下來，我們來談談團體保險業務。如前所述，該集團的收益與去年同期創紀錄的第三季持平，但略低於我們的預期。重要的是，該業務的核心基本面依然強勁。我們繼續執行既定策略，在本地、區域和全國這三個獨特的市場領域提供價值；同時，我們持續專注於重新定位這項業務，以實現可持續的盈利增長，轉變我們的運營方式，並提供可靠的優質客戶服務。

We're seeing tangible results from our actions as reflected in our year-over-year 5% premium growth, driven by robust sales, strong persistency and pricing discipline across both new and renewal business. Our premium expansion was broad-based with increasing results across all market segments and product categories with supplemental health, a strategic area of focus, increasing 33% year over year.

我們的行動已經取得了切實成果，保費年增 5%，這得益於強勁的銷售、穩定的續保率以及新業務和續保業務的定價紀律。我們的高端產品擴張基礎廣泛，所有市場區隔和產品類別均取得了成長，其中補充保健品作為我們的策略重點領域，年增了 33%。

This growth underscores the execution of our strategy to diversify across market segments, expand and deepen the product portfolio, and invest in the people process and technology to create differentiated capabilities that deliver a simpler, faster, and more connected customer experience. While the third quarter is typically a seasonally lighter sales period, group delivered year-over-year sales growth of nearly 40% and broadly diversified across market segments and products.

這一成長凸顯了我們多元化市場、拓展和深化產品組合、投資於人員、流程和技術以創造差異化能力的策略執行情況，從而提供更簡單、更快捷、更緊密聯繫的客戶體驗。雖然第三季通常是銷售淡季，但該集團實現了近 40% 的同比增長，並在市場區隔和產品方面實現了廣泛的多元化。

In this business, servicing our customers with excellence is a strategic differentiator. As we look ahead, we will continue to drive our segment strategy in a profitable and sustainable way by broadening our distribution relationships, expanding our product suite, and continuing to expand our digital tools and technology to drive more productivity, efficiency, and effectiveness.

在這個行業，為客戶提供卓越的服務是一項策略差異化優勢。展望未來，我們將繼續以盈利和可持續的方式推進我們的細分市場策略，透過擴大分銷關係、擴展產品組合以及不斷擴展數位化工具和技術，來提高生產力、效率和效益。

Grounded in a strong foundation and disciplined execution from pricing to expansion in growing addressable markets, our group business is well positioned to drive sustainable growth and profitability. While we expect some variability in results from quarter to quarter, the fundamentals are strong, and the long-term trajectory is positive.

集團業務擁有堅實的基礎，從定價到在不斷增長的目標市場擴張，都採取了嚴格的執行措施，因此能夠實現可持續增長和盈利。雖然我們預期各季度業績會有一些波動，但基本面強勁，長期發展趨勢正面。

Now turning to Retirement Plan Services, or RPS. RPS delivered a strong quarter, achieving 5% year-over-year earnings growth and first year sales of $2.4 billion as the robust new business pipeline we previously communicated materialized this quarter. Additionally, total deposits increased 20% year over year and net flows were positive, driven by the strong sales momentum in the quarter.

現在轉向退休計畫服務，或稱為 RPS。RPS 本季業績強勁，年增 5%，第一年銷售額達到 24 億美元，此前我們宣布的強勁新業務管道在本季度得以實現。此外，受本季強勁的銷售動能推動，總存款年增 20%，淨流入為正。

Our offerings and our core recordkeeping and institutional markets continue to drive meaningful customer engagement, reinforcing our long-term growth potential. Looking ahead, we will continue to focus on initiatives that will enhance our operational and service capabilities, broaden our product offerings, and drive greater efficiency as we pursue sustainable and profitable growth.

我們的產品和服務以及我們的核心記錄保存和機構市場持續推動有意義的客戶互動，從而鞏固了我們的長期成長潛力。展望未來，我們將繼續專注於提升營運和服務能力、拓展產品供應、提高效率的各項舉措，以追求可持續的獲利成長。

In closing, we are moving forward with conviction, intention and collective determination. The progress we have made is evident not only in our financial results, but in the precision of our execution and operating model. We are continuing to refine and fortify and the durability of our capital position. We are expanding our strategic advantage by pivoting toward higher-margin, capital-efficient growth, investing in the foundational core that sharpens our competitive edge and evolving into a more agile, scalable, and forward-looking enterprise.

最後，我們將滿懷信念、堅定決心和集體意志向前邁進。我們所取得的進步不僅體現在財務績效上，也體現在執行的精準性和營運模式。我們將持續改進和加強我們的資本實力，以提高其穩定性。我們正在透過轉向利潤率更高、資本效率更高的成長模式來擴大我們的策略優勢，投資於能夠增強我們競爭優勢的基礎核心，並發展成為更敏捷、可擴展和前瞻性的企業。

Through disciplined transformation, we are building a market-leading franchise equipped to thrive in a dynamic environment, align capital with strategic priorities, and capture value where we have built scale and momentum. In summary, we are delivering today while advancing the capabilities that will drive tomorrow.

透過有條不紊的轉型，我們正在打造一個市場領先的特許經營品牌，使其能夠在動態環境中蓬勃發展，使資本與戰略重點保持一致，並在我們已經建立規模和勢頭的地方獲取價值。總之，我們既要確保當下的交付成果，也要不斷提升推動未來發展的能力。

With that, I will turn the call over to Chris.

接下來，我將把電話交給克里斯。

Thank you, Ellen, and good morning, everyone. Our third-quarter results represent another quarter of strong execution and meaningful progress on our strategic initiatives delivering year-over-year adjusted operating income growth for the fifth consecutive quarter. This continued broadening momentum underscores the effectiveness of our strategy and a disciplined approach consistently demonstrated across our businesses.

謝謝你，艾倫，大家早安。第三季業績表明，我們在策略性舉措方面又取得了強勁的執行力和實質進展，連續第五個季度實現了經調整後的營業收入同比增長。這種持續擴大的動力凸顯了我們策略的有效性，以及我們在各項業務中始終如一地展現出的嚴謹方法。

Importantly, each of our businesses delivered stable or improved year-over-year earnings. Alongside this, we maintain a strong emphasis on free cash flow generation and capital efficiency, reinforcing Lincoln's ability to deliver attractive risk-adjusted returns and positioning the enterprise for durable long-term success.

重要的是，我們每個業務部門都實現了同比或成長的利潤。同時，我們始終高度重視自由現金流的產生和資本效率，從而增強林肯公司提供具有吸引力的風險調整後回報的能力，並為企業的長期成功奠定基礎。

This morning, I'll focus on three primary areas. First, I'll discuss our consolidated results for the third quarter, including the outcome of our annual review of reserve assumptions. Second, I'll provide insights into our segment level performance. And third, I'll offer a brief update on our capital position and investment portfolio. Let's begin with a recap of the quarter.

今天上午，我將重點討論三個主要方面。首先，我將討論我們第三季的綜合業績，包括我們對年度儲備假設進行審查的結果。其次，我將提供關於我們業務板塊表現的見解。第三，我將簡單介紹一下我們的資本狀況和投資組合。讓我們先來回顧一下本季的情況。

This morning, we reported third-quarter adjusted operating income available to common stockholders of $397 million or $2.04 per share. This includes the impact of this year's assumption review which increased adjusted operating income by $2 million or $0.01 per share. Additionally, our alternative investment returns were largely in line with expectations, delivering an annualized return of just under 10% or $101 million. After tax, this was $2 million below our target or $0.01 per diluted share.

今天上午，我們公佈了歸屬於普通股股東的第三季調整後營業收入為 3.97 億美元，即每股 2.04 美元。這包括今年假設審查的影響，該審查使調整後的營業收入增加了 200 萬美元，即每股 0.01 美元。此外，我們的另類投資回報基本上符合預期，年化報酬率略低於 10%，即 1.01 億美元。扣除稅款後，這比我們的目標低了 200 萬美元，即每股攤薄收益低了 0.01 美元。

Turning to net income. We reported net income available to common stockholders of $411 million or $2.12 per diluted share. The difference between the net income and adjusted operating income was predominantly driven by two main factors.

接下來看淨收入。我們公佈歸屬於普通股股東的淨利潤為 4.11 億美元，即每股攤薄收益 2.12 美元。淨收入與調整後營業收入的差異主要由兩個主要因素造成。

First, there was a negative after-tax change of $151 million in the fair value of the GAAP embedded derivatives related to the Fortitude Re reinsurance transaction. This change was primarily driven by the impact of lower interest rates on available-for-sale securities in the funds withheld portfolio backing the agreement with the corresponding offset flowing through accumulated other comprehensive income or AOCI.

首先，與 Fortitude Re 再保險交易相關的 GAAP 嵌入式衍生性商品的公允價值稅後變動為負 1.51 億美元。此變更主要是由於資金保留組合中可供出售證券的利率下降所致，而相應的抵銷則透過累積的其他綜合收益或 AOCI 來實現。

Second, more than offsetting this negative was a favorable after-tax impact of $324 million within nonoperating income, driven primarily by the positive movement in market risk benefits amid a stable interest rate environment and higher equity markets. Of note, our hedge program continues to perform well, in line with expectations. As in prior years, the effectiveness of our hedging strategy allowed us to take the $50 million distribution from LINBAR this quarter.

其次，非經營收入中 3.24 億美元的稅後有利影響抵消了這種不利影響，這主要是由於在穩定的利率環境和更高的股票市場中，市場風險收益出現了積極變化。值得注意的是，我們的對沖計劃持續表現良好，符合預期。與往年一樣，我們的對沖策略的有效性使我們能夠在本季度從 LINBAR 獲得 5000 萬美元的分配。

Before turning to our segment results, I want to briefly touch on the impacts of our annual review of reserve assumptions on adjusted operating income. As I noted earlier, the overall impact from the assumption review this quarter was minimal, resulting in a $2 million net benefit to adjusted operating income. While there were some positive and some negative adjustments, none were material relative to the scope of our reserves.

在介紹我們各業務部門的業績之前，我想先簡單談談我們對年度儲備假設的檢討對調整後營業收入的影響。正如我之前提到的，本季假設審查的整體影響很小，為調整後的營業收入帶來了 200 萬美元的淨收益。雖然有一些正面調整和一些負面調整，但相對於我們的儲備規模而言，這些調整都不重大。

Group Protection earnings benefited from a positive adjustment of $39 million this quarter, driven mainly by updated assumptions in our [LTD] and lifelines, reflecting favorable trends we've seen over the past few years. This was offset by modest negative impacts in both our Life and Annuities operating income of $29 million and $8 million, respectively.

本季團體保障業務收益受惠於 3,900 萬美元的積極調整，主要得益於我們 [LTD] 和人壽保險業務的更新假設，反映了我們在過去幾年中看到的有利趨勢。但這被壽險和年金業務營業收入分別受到的 2,900 萬美元和 800 萬美元的輕微負面影響所抵消。

As it relates to our life assumptions, the impact this quarter stems from slightly elevated mortality experience within our Universal Life block, which was primarily offset by more favorable mortality experience in our term block, consistent with the drivers of our recent results. Importantly, policyholder behavior remains broadly in line with our expectations. The impacts of our annual assumption review on our segment results for this period and the prior year period are detailed in our earnings release issued this morning.

就我們的壽險假設而言，本季的影響源於萬能壽險板塊略微上升的死亡率，但這主要被定期壽險板塊更為有利的死亡率所抵消，這與我們近期業績的驅動因素一致。重要的是，投保人的行為總體上仍然符合我們的預期。我們今天早上發布的盈利報告中詳細說明了年度假設審查對本期和上年同期各業務部門業績的影響。

Now turning to our segment results. Excluding the impact of the assumption review, Group Protection operating earnings were $110 million, consistent with the prior year record third quarter, and the margin for the quarter was 8.1%, reflecting a modest decline of 40 basis points year over year. The main driver of our results was a moderation in our disability loss ratio, which increased to 76.7% compared to 70.5% in the third quarter of 2024, excluding the impacts of the assumption review.

現在來看我們各細分市場的業績。剔除假設審查的影響，團體保護業務的營業利潤為 1.1 億美元，與上年同期創紀錄的第三季度持平，該季度利潤率為 8.1%，同比小幅下降 40 個基點。我們業績的主要驅動因素是殘障損失率下降，從 2024 年第三季的 70.5% 上升至 76.7%（不包括假設審查的影響）。

This increase reflected both volatility, specifically one month of unfavorable severity in our LTD experience, as well as lower LTD recoveries. While we've seen the volatility in severity normalize, the lower LTD recovery rate will likely continue. Over recent years, enhancements in our claims management practices have significantly improved early-stage resolutions, but as these practices mature, incremental benefits naturally moderate.

這一增長反映了波動性，特別是我們長期傷殘保險經驗中一個月的不利嚴重程度，以及長期傷殘保險回收率的下降。雖然我們看到嚴重程度的波動已經趨於正常，但長期殘疾的恢復率較低的情況可能會持續下去。近年來，我們理賠管理實務的改進顯著提高了早期問題的解決率，但隨著這些實踐的成熟，逐步提高的效益自然趨於平緩。

Offsetting this unfavorability during the quarter was continued favorability in LTD incidents and continued favorability in life results. Group Life results in particular, remained strong year over year, delivering the second lowest loss ratio post the pandemic, supported by lower incidents and favorable severity outcomes.

本季不利因素被長期殘障事故和人壽保險業績的持續利好所抵消。團體人壽保險的業績尤其強勁，與去年同期保持良好勢頭，在疫情後賠付率排名第二低，這得益於事故發生率降低和嚴重程度結果良好。

Excluding the impact of the assumption review, our life loss ratio improved relative to the favorable prior year quarter, declining to 65.3% compared with 71.8% in the third quarter of 2024. Although quarterly fluctuations in mortality outcomes are expected, this continued strength underscores the effectiveness of our disciplined pricing.

排除假設審查的影響，我們的壽險損失率較上年同期有所改善，從 2024 年第三季的 71.8% 降至 65.3%。儘管死亡率結果出現季度波動在所難免，但這種持續的強勁勢頭凸顯了我們嚴格的定價策略的有效性。

As a reminder, we typically experience seasonal pressure from the third to fourth quarter. Looking ahead and incorporating the third quarter trends and these seasonal factors, we expect to end the full year with a margin in the range of mid to upper 8%, representing a roughly 50 basis point improvement year over year. We remain confident in our strategy, disciplined execution and ability to deliver attractive and resilient long-term performance.

提醒一下，我們通常會在第三季到第四季之間經歷季節性壓力。展望未來，結合第三季趨勢和這些季節性因素，我們預計全年利潤率將在 8% 中高段位，比上年同期提高約 50 個基點。我們對我們的策略、嚴謹的執行力和實現具有吸引力和韌性的長期業績的能力充滿信心。

Now turning to Annuities. Excluding the impact of the assumption review, Annuities delivered operating earnings of $318 million, up $18 million year over year driven by higher average account balances net of reinsurance and continued growth in spread income. Additionally, this quarter's earnings included a benefit of approximately $10 million from favorable expense dynamics, primarily related to expense timing and certain tax items that were partially offset within other operations.

現在來說說年金。不計假設審查的影響，年金業務實現營業利潤 3.18 億美元，年增 1800 萬美元，主要得益於扣除再保險後平均帳戶餘額的增加以及利差收入的持續增長。此外，本季收益還包括約 1000 萬美元的有利支出動態收益，主要與支出時間表和某些稅收項目有關，這些項目在其他業務中部分抵消了。

Turning to spreads. Spread income continued to grow, with spread-based products representing 29% of total annuity account balances net of reinsurance, reflecting our commitment to diversifying our Annuity business. RILA account balances increased 16% over the prior year quarter, representing 22% of total balances net of reinsurance.

接下來是價差分析。利差收入持續成長，利差產品佔年金帳戶總餘額（扣除再保險）的 29%，這反映了我們對年金業務多元化的承諾。RILA 帳戶餘額比去年同期增加了 16%，佔扣除再保險後總餘額的 22%。

Fixed annuity account balances were 11% higher year over year as we began retaining all of the fixed business we sold during the quarter. From a net flows perspective, VA net outflows continued at a similar pace as in recent quarters, reflecting the maturity of the block while net flows into spread-based products exceeded $1 billion, further underscoring the success of our strategic diversification efforts.

由於我們開始保留本季出售的所有固定業務，固定年金帳戶餘額年增 11%。從淨資金流動的角度來看，VA淨流出繼續以與最近幾季類似的速度進行，反映出該板塊的成熟度，而流入利差產品的淨資金超過10億美元，進一步凸顯了我們戰略多元化努力的成功。

Overall, our Annuities business delivered strong earnings growth reflecting our ongoing efforts to diversify and strengthen the stability of our earnings base in this business. We remain confident that our disciplined approach positions us well to deliver stable, attractive returns over the long term.

總體而言，我們的年金業務實現了強勁的獲利成長，這反映了我們不斷努力實現多元化並加強該業務獲利基礎的穩定性。我們仍然堅信，我們嚴謹的方法使我們能夠在長期內獲得穩定、可觀的回報。

Retirement Plan Services reported operating income of $46 million, up slightly from $44 million in the prior year quarter driven by higher account balances amid a favorable equity market backdrop and spread expansion. This was partially offset by pressure from stable value outflows over the past 12 months, although the level of stable value outflows has stabilized in recent quarters.

退休計畫服務部門報告稱，其營業收入為 4,600 萬美元，較上年同期的 4,400 萬美元略有增長，這主要得益於有利的股票市場環境和利差擴大，從而帶動了帳戶餘額的增加。過去 12 個月穩定價值資金外流帶來的壓力部分抵消了這一影響，儘管近幾季穩定價值資金外流的水準已經趨於穩定。

Sequentially, earnings improved by $9 million, the result of favorable equity markets and improved spreads. It's worth noting that this quarter benefited from approximately $2 million of nonrecurring items, primarily driven by net investment income favorability, which had an offset in other operations.

受股市行情好轉和利差擴大的影響，公司獲利季增 900 萬美元。值得注意的是，本季受益於約 200 萬美元的非經常性項目，主要得益於淨投資收益的有利增長，但其他業務運營中存在抵消因素。

Base spreads were 107 basis points, up from the prior quarter and prior year. The sequential increase reflects normalization following last quarter's onetime administrative adjustment as well as about 2 basis points of benefit from the nonrecurring net investment income dynamic just discussed. On a normalized basis, spreads are broadly consistent with last year's third quarter.

基準利差為 107 個基點，較上一季及去年同期均上升。環比成長反映了上一季一次性行政調整後的正常化，以及剛才討論的非經常性淨投資收益動態帶來的約 2 個基點的收益。經調整後，價差與去年第三季基本一致。

Net inflows totaled $755 million, reflecting strong sales momentum and a robust pipeline noted last quarter. As we look ahead to the fourth quarter, we expect flows to be pressured by a few known plan terminations, the majority of which were not meeting our profitability targets.

淨流入總額達 7.55 億美元，反映了上季強勁的銷售動能和穩健的業務儲備。展望第四季度，我們預計資金流動將受到一些已知計劃終止的影響，其中大多數計劃未能達到我們的獲利目標。

Account balances benefited from equity market performance with average balances increasing nearly 8% year over year. End-of-period balances reached $123 billion, up 5% sequentially. Overall, our third-quarter results highlight steady improvement and positive momentum within Retirement Plan Services.

帳戶餘額受益於股票市場表現，平均餘額較去年同期成長近 8%。期末餘額達 1,230 億美元，較上季成長 5%。總體而言，我們第三季的業績凸顯了退休計畫服務領域的穩定改善和積極發展勢頭。

While we remain focused on disciplined expense management and continue to target efficiencies aligned with our long-term earnings objectives, it's important to remember that the fourth quarter typically brings a seasonal increase in expenses which we expect to be a modest sequential headwind. Beyond expense discipline, we remain focused on initiatives aimed at delivering underlying growth and enhancing the long-term profitability of Retirement Plan Services.

儘管我們仍專注於嚴格的費用管理，並繼續致力於提高效率以實現我們的長期盈利目標，但重要的是要記住，第四季度通常會帶來季節性的費用增長，我們預計這將對環比業績造成輕微的不利影響。除了控製成本之外，我們仍專注於旨在實現根本成長和提高退休計畫服務長期獲利能力的各項措施。

Now turning to Life. Excluding the impact of the assumption review, Life delivered operating earnings of $54 million for the third quarter compared to $14 million in the prior year quarter. The increase was driven by stabilization of our mortality experience, increased investment income, and continued expense discipline. Mortality results for the quarter improved compared to the prior year quarter, driven by lower incidents while severity was slightly higher, overall experience was consistent with our expectations.

現在轉向生活。剔除假設審查的影響，Life 第三季的營業利潤為 5,400 萬美元，而上年同期為 1,400 萬美元。這一增長得益於死亡率的穩定、投資收益的增加以及持續的費用控制。本季死亡率結果較上年同期有所改善，主要原因是事故發生率降低，而嚴重程度略有上升，整體情況與我們的預期一致。

Turning to expenses. We continue to see year-over-year improvement, driven by disciplined expense management. Net G&A expenses declined 4% compared to the prior year quarter, reflecting continued underlying efficiency. Annualized alternative investment returns for the quarter were roughly 10%, essentially in line with our target, but below the 11% return we achieved in the prior year quarter.

接下來談談費用。在嚴格的費用管理下，我們持續看到業績逐年提升。淨一般及行政費用較上年同期下降 4%，反映出持續的潛在效率提升。本季另類投資年化收益率約為 10%，基本上符合我們的目標，但低於去年同期實現的 11% 的收益率。

More broadly, we are beginning to realize the benefits of increased investment income, driven in part by continued growth in alternative investments which remain well aligned with our life liabilities as well as ongoing enhancements to our overall investment profile, all of which should continue to support earnings going forward.

更廣泛地說，我們開始意識到投資收益增加的好處，這部分得益於另類投資的持續增長，這些投資與我們的人壽負債保持著良好的一致性，以及我們整體投資組合的不斷改進，所有這些都應繼續支持未來的收益。

Overall, the strong results this quarter highlight the ongoing progress that we have made in our Life business, further validating the strategic initiatives we've implemented to position this business for sustained profitability.

總體而言，本季強勁的業績凸顯了我們在人壽保險業務方面取得的持續進展，進一步驗證了我們為使該業務實現持續盈利而實施的戰略舉措。

Turning now to expenses. As we've discussed, expense management remains a strategic priority across the organization, and we've made meaningful progress year to date. Through the first three quarters, we achieved significant improvements in operational efficiency with expenses tracking favorably compared to the prior year. This disciplined approach has been driven both from a total company perspective, and through targeted actions such as within our Life business.

接下來談談費用。正如我們之前討論過的，費用管理仍然是整個組織的策略重點，今年到目前為止，我們已經取得了顯著進展。前三個季度，我們的營運效率顯著提高，費用也比上年同期下降。這種嚴謹的方法既源自於公司的整體策略，也源自於我們在人壽保險業務等領域所採取的針對性行動。

However, as is typical, we anticipate that expenses will rise substantially in the fourth quarter in certain areas, largely attributable to higher variable compensation, including the impact of anticipated growth in sales volumes during the quarter. Additionally, certain strategic investments intended to enhance the long-term profitability of our businesses will have a slightly greater impact in the fourth quarter compared to earlier quarters.

然而，正如往常一樣，我們預計第四季度某些領域的支出將大幅上升，這主要是由於可變薪酬增加，包括預計本季銷售量成長的影響。此外，旨在提高我們業務長期盈利能力的某些策略性投資，在第四季度將比前幾季度產生更大的影響。

Despite this expected sequential increase, our full-year expenses will reflect the disciplined actions we've executed this year which we expect will result in relatively flat expenses compared to the prior year despite higher sales and increased volumes. We remain committed to disciplined expense management, ensuring we maintain and build upon our progress in managing the expense base effectively.

儘管預計會出現環比增長，但我們全年的支出將反映出我們今年採取的嚴格措施，我們預計儘管銷售額和銷量有所增長，但與前一年相比，支出將保持相對穩定。我們將繼續致力於嚴格的費用管理，確保我們在有效管理費用基礎方面保持並取得更大進展。

Now for an update on capital. We again ended the quarter with an estimated RBC ratio well above our 420% buffer continuing to maintain a strong excess capital position above our target due to the Bain proceeds and growth in retained free cash flow during the year. As we've indicated previously, we expect to deploy this excess capital over the next year as we execute against our strategic objectives.

現在來看看資本方面的最新情況。本季末，我們估計的 RBC 比率再次遠高於我們 420% 的緩衝水平，由於貝恩資本的收益和年內留存自由現金流的增長，我們繼續保持高於目標的強勁超額資本狀況。正如我們先前所指出的，我們預計將在未來一年內利用這筆剩餘資金來實現我們的策略目標。

This quarter, we made meaningful progress on three specific initiatives. First, we fully transitioned to retaining all of the fixed annuity business we originate with the exiting of our external flow reinsurance agreement. The strategic objective of achieving a more balanced mix of variable and spread annuity earnings will come through various actions with the full retention of existing sales the important first step.

本季度，我們在三項具體措施上取得了實質進展。首先，隨著我們終止外部再保險協議，我們完全過渡到保留所有我們產生的固定年金業務。實現更均衡的可變年金和利差年金收益組合的策略目標，將透過各種措施來實現，而充分保留現有銷售額是重要的第一步。

Leveraging our Bermuda-based affiliate and a more fully optimized asset allocation framework will allow us to expand profitability, while a portion of the proceeds from the Bain transaction currently sitting in excess capital will be deployed to support this retention. It's worth noting from a GAAP perspective, you'll see slightly higher retained acquisition expenses in the near term which should translate to higher spread income and profitability over time.

利用我們在百慕達的附屬公司和更完善的資產配置框架，我們將能夠擴大盈利能力，同時，目前閒置的貝恩交易所得款項的一部分將用於支持這一留存。從 GAAP 的角度來看，值得注意的是，短期內你會看到保留收購費用略高，但從長遠來看，這應該會轉化為更高的利潤率和獲利能力。

Second, we continue to scale our institutional funding agreement program with $1.9 billion in issuance completed year to date. As we've discussed previously, FABN and other similar programs are an important growth engine for our spread earnings and will utilize some of our excess capital over the next year or two. Over the next year, we plan to begin disclosing the specific earnings metrics as we scale the program.

其次，我們繼續擴大機構融資協議計畫的規模，今年迄今已完成發行 19 億美元。正如我們之前討論過的，FABN 和其他類似項目是我們利差收益的重要成長引擎，並將在未來一兩年內利用我們的一些剩餘資本。接下來一年，隨著專案規模的擴大，我們計劃開始揭露具體的收益指標。

Lastly, optimizing our legacy Life block has been a critical objective that we've been working on for the last three years. And as we discussed post the Bain transaction, we are evaluating a number of actions that should enhance the long-term free cash flow from this block. We'll have more to say on this in our outlook discussion next quarter.

最後，優化我們原有的 Life 模組是我們過去三年一直在努力實現的關鍵目標。正如我們在貝恩交易後討論的那樣，我們正在評估一系列措施，這些措施應該能夠提高該板塊的長期自由現金流。我們將在下個季度的展望討論中對此進行更詳細的闡述。

Looking ahead, we remain committed to a disciplined and balanced approach to deploying our excess capital aimed at enhancing our risk-adjusted returns and positioning Lincoln for sustainable long-term success.

展望未來，我們將繼續秉持嚴謹平衡的原則，運用我們的盈餘資本，以提高經風險調整後的收益，並為林肯的可持續長期成功奠定基礎。

Turning to investments. Our investment portfolio delivered solid results in the third quarter, reflecting disciplined management, effective diversification, and ongoing execution. Portfolio credit quality remained strong, with 97% of investments rated investment grade and below investment grade exposure near historic lows.

轉向投資。我們的投資組合在第三季取得了穩健的業績，這反映了我們嚴謹的管理、有效的多元化和持續的執行。投資組合信用品質依然強勁，97% 的投資評級為投資等級，低於投資等級的風險敞口接近歷史低點。

Our partnership with Bain Capital continues to enhance our investment capabilities, and we are already benefiting from increased sourcing flexibility and execution efficiency. Within private credit, we remain comfortable and confident in our long-standing disciplined approach and continue to lean into investment-grade private and structured strategies as we further optimize our investment portfolio while supporting objectives around sales growth, earnings potential, and capital generation.

我們與貝恩資本的合作不斷提升我們的投資能力，我們已經從中受益，獲得了更大的投資彈性和更高的執行效率。在私募信貸領域，我們依然堅持長期以來嚴謹的方法，並繼續增加對投資級私募和結構化策略的投入，以進一步優化我們的投資組合，同時支持銷售增長、盈利潛力和資本創造等目標。

Lastly, alternative investments generated roughly a 2.5% return for the quarter, generally consistent with our long-term expectations and reflecting continued strength across strategies. In closing, our third-quarter results reflect another period of consistent execution and meaningful progress on our strategic priorities. We delivered strong earnings across all businesses, advanced initiatives to diversify and enhance our earnings base, and maintained a healthy capital position.

最後，另類投資在本季產生了約 2.5% 的回報，這與我們的長期預期基本一致，並反映了各項策略的持續強勁表現。總之，我們第三季的業績反映了我們在策略重點方面持續穩定的執行和取得的實質進展。我們所有業務都實現了強勁的盈利，推進了多元化和增強盈利基礎的舉措，並保持了健康的資本狀況。

These outcomes underscore the effectiveness of our strategy and the disciplined approach we've taken to enhance capital efficiency, free cash flow generation, and long-term profitability. While our results will not always be linear, the broader momentum across the enterprise remains clear. The actions we've taken this year position Lincoln for a strong 2025 and we remain focused and on track to achieve the objectives outlined in our 2026 outlook.

這些成果凸顯了我們策略的有效性，以及我們為提高資本效率、自由現金流產生和長期獲利能力所採取的嚴謹方法。雖然我們的業績未必總是呈線性成長，但整個企業的整體發展動能依然明顯。我們今年採取的行動使林肯在 2025 年取得了強勁的進展，我們將繼續專注於實現我們在 2026 年展望中概述的目標，並朝著這個目標穩步前進。

Our commitment to disciplined execution and balanced capital deployment continues to reinforce our ability to deliver durable, attractive risk-adjusted returns and long-term shareholder value.

我們秉持嚴謹的執行和均衡的資本配置，不斷增強我們實現持久、具吸引力的風險調整後回報和長期股東價值的能力。

With that, let me turn the call back over to Tina.

那麼，我把電話轉回給蒂娜。

Thank you, Chris. Let me turn the call over to the operator to begin Q&A. Operator?

謝謝你，克里斯。我現在將電話轉交給接線生，開始問答環節。操作員？

(Operator Instructions) Joel Hurwitz, Dowling & Partners.

（操作說明）Joel Hurwitz，Dowling & Partners。

Wanted to start on Life. So good to see another quarter of improved earnings. Can you unpack the drivers there anything unusual in the quarter? And then there's been volatility over the past several quarters with Life earnings. I believe your '26 guide that you provided a couple of quarters ago suggested earnings may even be above the level we saw in Q3. Any way you could help us understand the earnings power of this business in the near to intermediate term?

想開始人生之旅。很高興看到又一個季度獲利成長。你能把司機們都叫過來嗎？這塊區域有什麼異常狀況嗎？過去幾個季度，Life 的收益也出現了波動。我相信您在幾個季度前提供的 2026 年業績指南表明，盈利甚至可能高於我們在第三季度看到的水平。您能否幫助我們了解這家企業在中短期內的獲利能力？

Sure, Joel. It's Chris. What I would say is that this quarter was really a reflection of a stable quarter for the Life Insurance block. If you think about it, there's drivers of volatility that are probably more outsized for that business. As you're well aware, mortality and alternative investment returns as the two big ones.

當然可以，喬爾。是克里斯。我想說的是，本季確實反映了人壽保險業務部門的穩定表現。仔細想想，對於該行業來說，可能存在一些影響更大的波動因素。如您所知，死亡率和另類投資回報是兩大關鍵因素。

And as I said in my prepared remarks, both mortality and alt returns came in basically as expected for this quarter. And so it's actually a really nice quarter because you can see it in a stable environment for the big drivers of volatility, what the third quarter earnings power would look like. The reason I emphasize third quarter is because I'm sure you know, there is seasonality in that business.

正如我在準備好的發言稿中所說，本季死亡率和另類投資報酬率基本上符合預期。因此，這實際上是一個非常不錯的季度，因為你可以看到，在一個波動性主要驅動因素穩定的環境下，第三季度的獲利能力會是什麼樣子。我之所以強調第三季度，是因為我相信您也知道，這個行業有季節性因素。

And so third quarter and fourth quarter tend to be, call it, $20 million higher than the average second quarter tends to -- would represent a flat quarter and then first quarter the $40 million worth just given the drivers of mortality. So you could look at the third quarter as a good run rate once you normalize for seasonality.

因此，第三季和第四季往往比平均第二季高出 2,000 萬美元——第二季則持平，而第一季則高出 4,000 萬美元，這僅僅是由於死亡率的驅動因素造成的。因此，在考慮季節性因素後，你可以將第三季視為一個良好的運行率。

What I would say as it relates to the drivers because when you do that for this year and last year, you are seeing growth year over year, which is positive. It's in line with the expectations that we had set out. And it's driven by the things that we said it would be driven by. It's increased net investment income, part of that is the growth in the alternative investment income portfolio, not necessarily the rate which has stabilized, but the growth in the balances we've discussed how they are a good long-term fit for the long-duration nature of the liabilities.

就司機而言，我想說的是，當你比較今年和去年的數據時，你會發現每年都在成長，這是正面的。這符合我們預期。而它的發展也正是由我們之前所說的那些因素所驅動的。淨投資收益增加，其中一部分是另類投資收益組合的成長，不一定是已經穩定的成長率，而是我們討論過的餘額的成長，它們與負債的長期性質非常契合。

And most importantly, you continue to see the expense discipline that we've talked about and that's starting to come through in a more fulsome way. So at the end of the day, a number of those drivers should continue as we look out over the next couple of years. We're excited about the growth potential as it relates to the earnings power of that business. And it's just nice to have a really clean quarter so you can see what the underlying earnings power looks like for a third quarter.

最重要的是，我們一直強調的費用控制，而這種控制正在以更全面的方式反映出來。所以歸根結底，展望未來幾年，其中一些驅動因素應該會繼續存在。我們對該公司的成長潛力及其獲利能力感到興奮。而且，如果能有一個非常清晰的季度業績，就能清楚地看到第三季的潛在獲利能力，這真是太好了。

Got it. That's helpful. And then just on capital, with leverage essentially back to your 25% target and a much improved capital position. Where do you guys stand on resuming a share repurchase program?

知道了。那很有幫助。然後，就資本而言，槓桿率基本上恢復到 25% 的目標水平，資本狀況也得到了極大改善。你們對恢復股票回購計畫持什麼態度？

Yeah, Joel, thanks for the question. I think, as you know, we tend to talk in more detail about our capital plans and free cash flow outlook and so forth as part of our fourth-quarter earnings call when we give the outlook. What I would say is that relative to the guidance that we put out two years ago and then reiterated at the beginning of this year, we are tracking at expectations, if not better, across almost all the metrics.

是的，喬爾，謝謝你的提問。我想，正如您所知，我們在第四季度財報電話會議上給出展望時，往往會更詳細地討論我們的資本計劃和自由現金流前景等等。我想說的是，相對於我們兩年前發布的指導意見以及今年年初重申的意見，我們在幾乎所有指標上都達到了預期，甚至更好。

So we feel really good about the direction of the company, both from a GAAP earnings perspective, sales, free cash flow, RBC. We're obviously working through the deployment of the Bain proceeds over the next year. And at the end of the day, as we've talked about before, when we get the fourth quarter and give a more detailed look as it relates to how we're thinking about capital and deployment, both internally and for return to shareholders, we'll go through that in more detail.

因此，我們對公司的發展方向感到非常樂觀，無論是從 GAAP 獲利、銷售額、自由現金流或 RBC 的角度來看都是如此。我們顯然正在製定貝恩資本未來一年的募集資金使用方案。最後，正如我們之前討論過的，當我們拿到第四季度財報，並更詳細地分析我們如何考慮資本和部署（包括內部和股東回報）時，我們會更詳細地進行闡述。

Got it. Thank you.

知道了。謝謝。

Ryan Krueger, KBW.

Ryan Krueger，KBW。

I had a question to start on Group. With this year's margin expected to come in at the mid- to upper-8% range, is that a good starting point when thinking about going forward? Or -- I mean, because I think you probably still had pretty favorable mortality this year. And it sounds like disability maybe is reverting more to a bit of a lower level. So just trying to think through if that's a good starting point or if we should actually normalize a bit lower going forward, at least in the near term?

我有一個問題想在群組裡提出。預計今年的利潤率將在 8% 到 8% 之間，這是否是展望未來的一個好的起點？或者——我的意思是，因為我認為你們今年的死亡率可能仍然相當低。聽起來殘疾狀況似乎正在逐漸恢復到較低水平。所以，我只是想弄清楚這是否是一個好的起點，或者我們是否應該至少在短期內將正常水平降低一些？

Sure. I'll answer your question, and I'll give you more detail maybe than you had asked. But if you step back, let's just start by saying that we're -- we feel really good about the trajectory of group, right? I mean, the business there was a 1% to 3% margin business a couple of years ago.

當然。我會回答你的問題，而且我可能會提供比你要求的更詳細的資訊。但退一步說，我們先來說說，我們對團隊的發展軌跡感到非常滿意，對吧？我的意思是，幾年前那裡的利潤率只有 1% 到 3%。

We've improved to over 8% last year. We're going to see another 50 basis points improvement this year. You're seeing premium growth 4% to 5% on average. So the outlook for group hasn't changed. What's happening this quarter is that some of the normalization that we had expected maybe more in 2026, it's just happening a little bit earlier.

去年我們提高了 8% 以上。今年我們預計還會再提高50個基點。平均而言，保費成長率在 4% 到 5% 之間。所以該集團的前景並沒有改變。本季的情況是，我們原本預計在 2026 年才會出現的某些正常化現象，現在只是提前了一點發生而已。

And I'll unpack all of that. But I just want to reiterate by saying we feel really strong about the trajectory for group and at the end of the day, our outlook has not changed. So if you step back and sort of unpack this quarter, and I'll hit on both disability and life to your question. Disability loss ratio is up, call it, 6 points.

我會把這一切都一一解釋清楚。但我只想重申，我們對集團的發展軌跡充滿信心，歸根究底，我們的看法沒有改變。所以，如果你退後一步，仔細分析這個季度的情況，我會從殘疾和生活兩個方面來回答你的問題。殘障損失率上升了，大約上升了 6 個百分點。

As you know, disability loss ratios are driven by two primary things: the incidents, so the new claims being filed and then the resolutions; and obviously, the reserves released is claimants return to work. Incidence continues to be very positive. The trend there has been good for a number of years, and we haven't seen any signs of that reverting. It's a positive trend that will revert at some point to a more normalized level.

如您所知，殘障損失率主要受兩方面因素影響：事故，即新提交的索賠申請，以及索賠結果；顯然，索賠人重返工作崗位後釋放的準備金。發病率持續保持非常正面的態勢。該地區的發展趨勢已經持續多年，我們沒有看到任何逆轉的跡象。這是一個積極的趨勢，但遲早會回歸到更正常的水平。

But the incidence trends remain very strong. We would expect that trend to continue into the fourth quarter. Resolutions is where we saw less favorability this quarter, and it's really just -- it's driven by two things. So if you think about the 6-point change in the display loss ratio, Half of that, we would say, was driven by severity volatility. And so all that means is that during the month of August, the average size of the claim as it relates to resolutions was lower than we would expect.

但發病率趨勢依然非常強勁。我們預計這一趨勢將持續到第四季。本季我們在「新年禮物」這一項上看到了較少的青睞，這主要是由兩件事造成的。因此，如果您考慮顯示損失率的 6 個百分點的變化，我們認為其中一半是由嚴重程度波動造成的。因此，這意味著在 8 月份，與和解相關的索賠平均規模低於我們的預期。

That's volatility that happens. We've already seen that revert in September and October. The other half, though, is a normalization of the resolution rate. And it's still really good compared to historical levels, but it is normalizing off of what was an extremely strong 2024 number. And we would expect that trend to continue.

這就是市場波動。我們已經看到這種情況在九月和十月有所逆轉。另一半則是解析度的歸一化。與歷史水平相比，這仍然非常好，但它正在從2024年極其強勁的數字中恢復正常。我們預計這種趨勢還會持續下去。

Now, as I mentioned, part of the dynamic that's occurred over the past couple of years is we've invested in our systems and our processes. You were seeing resolutions trend lower than we would expect over the long term, the rate being higher. And so what -- when we think about our outlook, 2026, 2027, and beyond, we'd always expected that normalization.

正如我剛才提到的，過去幾年發生的部分變化是，我們對系統和流程進行了投資。從長遠來看，您發現的決議趨勢低於我們的預期，而決議的執行率則更高。所以，當我們展望 2026 年、2027 年及以後時，我們一直都期待著這種正常化。

So at the end of the day, what I would say is third-quarter results had a little bit less favorability as it relates to the resolution rate. That was to be expected at some point. We're seeing it start a little bit earlier. But then as you look into next year, our expectation hasn't really changed.

所以總的來說，我認為第三季的業績在解決率方面略顯遜色。這遲早都會發生。我們發現這種情況開始得稍微早了一些。但展望明年，我們的預期並沒有真正改變。

On the Life side, I would say two things. One, the results have been pretty good over the past two years. Part of that, as we emerge further and further away from the pandemic, you're just seeing mortality improvement, and that's reaching a decent steady state. But the other thing that's happened, and we've talked a lot about this, is that a good portion of our rate increases or the rate actions in general that we've taken over the past two or three years have really been executed through the Life block.

關於生活方面，我想說兩點。第一，過去兩年取得的成績相當不錯。一方面，隨著我們越來越遠離疫情，死亡率也在下降，並逐漸達到一個較為穩定的狀態。但還有另一件事發生了，我們也對此進行了很多討論，那就是在過去兩三年裡，我們採取的大部分費率上漲或費率調整措施，實際上都是透過人壽保險業務來實現的。

So in 2025, we've seen mortality improvement, and we've seen the impact of the rate actions come through. That's contributing to improved loss ratios. Year to date, I think our life loss ratio has improved around 5%. And so that's going to have the favorable mortality in there, the pricing actions. And keep in mind, we also include sub-health in the life loss ratio. We'll look to think about incremental disclosures there over time.

因此，到 2025 年，我們看到死亡率有所改善，也看到了費率調整措施的影響顯現出來。這有助於降低賠付率。今年迄今為止，我認為我們的生命損失率已經改善了約 5%。因此，有利的死亡率和定價措施就會發揮作用。請記住，我們也把亞健康狀態計入壽命損失率。我們會考慮隨著時間的推移逐步披露相關資訊。

But at the end of the day, going forward, while we know there will be some volatility quarter to quarter, the results this year have been relatively within our expected range. I would say third quarter was probably at the low end of that range. And as we think about fourth quarter, we are continuing to see some of those positive trends.

但歸根結底，展望未來，雖然我們知道每個季度都會有一些波動，但今年的業績相對來說都在我們預期的範圍內。我認為第三季可能處於該範圍的下限。展望第四季度，我們繼續看到一些積極的趨勢。

And Ryan, I'll also add that as we think about future growth, that we also, as Chris alluded to, and also as you heard in our remarks, we continue to also see premium growth. Now we will always continue to prioritize profitable growth over pure top-line growth. But if you look at our overall premium growth, and we talked about the fact that we grew 5% year over year.

Ryan，我還要補充一點，當我們考慮未來的成長時，正如Chris所提到的，也正如你在我們的演講中所聽到的，我們繼續看到高端市場的成長。現在，我們將繼續優先考慮獲利成長，而不是單純的營收成長。但如果你看一下我們的整體保費成長情況，我們之前也提到過，我們比去年同期成長了 5%。

And importantly, we are continuing to lean in and we see more opportunity in local markets, which is a higher-margin part of this overall business. We've done an awful lot in the last couple of years to invest in the capabilities there to be able to strengthen our overall relationships with brokers that are also leaning in there and then we see this broadening, expanding opportunity as it relates to supplemental health.

更重要的是，我們正在繼續加大投入，並且我們看到了當地市場的更多機會，這是整個業務中利潤率更高的部分。在過去的幾年裡，我們投入了大量資源來提升這方面的能力，以加強我們與那些也積極參與其中的經紀人的整體關係，然後我們看到，在補充健康方面，這是一個不斷擴大和增長的機會。

And just to give you a sense, when we look at the overall premium growth year over year of 5%, 33% growth year over year in supplemental health. And in all cases, we see opportunity to just continue to expand lines of coverage in our regional and in national in that space. So we see that there continues to just be future opportunity to grow as it relates to the group business.

為了讓大家有個概念，我們來看整體保費年增 5%，補充健康保險年增 33%。在所有情況下，我們都看到了繼續擴大我們在區域和國家層面的保險覆蓋範圍的機會。因此，我們看到，就集團業務而言，未來仍有持續成長的機會。

So when you put all that together, Ryan, to answer your question specifically, Yes, there will be some normalization of some of the LTD trends that we've talked about. But offsetting that will be the positive impact from the dynamics Ellen just walked through the growth in supplemental health continued repricing -- so I wouldn't say that we're expecting deterioration in our margin. I think that this quarter, we just saw a little bit of that normalization happened earlier.

所以，瑞安，綜合考慮所有這些因素，具體回答你的問題，是的，我們討論過的一些長期債務趨勢將會逐漸正常化。但艾倫剛才提到的補充醫療保健持續重新定價的成長動態將帶來積極影響，從而抵消上述影響——所以我不會說我們預計利潤率會惡化。我認為本季度，我們看到這種正常化趨勢提前了一些。

Great. I appreciate all those details. One just quick follow up on disability resolutions. Do you think that -- I mean, do you think it has anything to do with the economy or do you think it's more just company specific, given how favorable it had been and just normalizing to a more sustainable level?

偉大的。我非常感謝您提供的所有細節。僅就殘障解決方案做一個簡要跟進。你認為──我的意思是，你認為這與經濟有關嗎？還是你認為這更多是公司特有的情況，畢竟之前情況非常有利，現在只是在向更可持續的水平回歸正常？

So I don't know that it really is anything to do with the economy, but I would also say it's more than just company specific, right, Ryan, because there's really two dynamics. One has been the increased processes and overall investments in our claims management process. That's certainly I can't speak for our peers. That is a very much Lincoln-specific strategic initiative we've talked about.

所以我不知道這是否真的與經濟有關，但我也要說，這不僅僅是公司特有的問題，對吧，瑞安，因為實際上有兩個動態因素。一方面，我們增加了理賠管理流程的流程和整體投資。當然，我不能代表我們的同行發言。這是我們討論過的林肯市特有的策略舉措。

But also as you just think about the fact that incidence rates have been very low over the past two years, the composition of your claim inventory has been shifting. And so as you know, late-stage late duration claims have a lower probability as it relates to being resolved and you work that down. So as the mix of your inventory changes, just to keep it simple, your rate -- the rate itself will normalize over time. And that's not a Lincoln specific thing, that's an industry thing.

但同時，考慮到過去兩年發病率一直很低，你的索賠庫存組成也發生了變化。所以你也知道，後期、持續時間長的索賠案件解決的可能性較低，而且你會逐步降低這種可能性。因此，隨著庫存組合的變化，簡單來說，你的利率——利率本身會隨著時間的推移而趨於正常化。這並非林肯汽車特有的問題，而是整個產業的普遍現象。

Got it. Thanks a lot. Appreciate it.

知道了。多謝。謝謝。

Suneet Kamath, Jefferies.

Suneet Kamath，傑富瑞集團。

I wanted to start with the assumption review. I'm acknowledging that it was fairly minor. Are there any statutory impacts that we should think about and is there any kind of ongoing earnings GAAP impacts that we should think about as well?

我想先從假設回顧開始。我承認這只是一件小事。我們需要考慮哪些法定影響？我們還需要考慮哪些持續的獲利GAAP影響？

No. Nothing material. We would spike it out if there was anything to note there.

不。沒什麼實質的東西。如果有什麼值得注意的地方，我們會把它排除在外。

Got it. And then I guess on the retention of the fixed annuity business, is that something that we're going to actually see in the earnings in the near term here or is that going to take some time to sort of develop? Just curious about the cadence of that.

知道了。那麼，關於固定年金業務的保留，我們能否在短期內看到收益方面的成長，還是需要一些時間才能顯現出來？只是好奇它的節奏如何。

Yeah. Good question. So -- and the answer is both, but for different reasons. So what happens is you'll see the account -- the net retained account balances grow, and you will see increase in investment income and increase in interest credited grow. I will say that one of the things we're looking at is a spread-based account values become a bigger part of the annuities block.

是的。問得好。所以——答案是兩者兼有，但原因不同。因此，你會看到帳戶－淨留存帳戶餘額成長，你會看到投資收益增加，以及計入利息增加。我想說的是，我們正在研究的一個方向是，以價差為基礎的帳戶價值在年金業務中佔據更大的份額。

We're going to look to get better disclosure next year to more explicitly spike out some of the individual drivers there. But that aside, what you will see is growth in spread income but that comes in as the assets and liabilities are emerging over the life of the policy.

明年我們將尋求更好的資訊揭露，以便更明確地找出其中的一些個別肇事者。但除此之外，你會看到利差收益的成長，但這要等到保單有效期限內資產和負債逐漸形成時才會實現。

In the near term, what happens is you actually have slightly higher retained acquisition expenses. So this is one of the things that I spiked out in my commentary where because we don't have the flow deal anymore, you don't see the offset as it relates to some of the acquisition expenses. And so that's a slight near-term or headwind to annuities. But then over time, you'll see growth in spread income.

短期來看，實際發生的情況是，你的獲客成本會稍微增加。所以，我在評論中特別指出了一點，因為我們不再有資金流動交易，所以你看不到與某些收購費用相關的抵消。因此，這對年金市場來說是一個輕微的短期不利因素。但隨著時間的推移，你會看到價差收益的成長。

Got it. Is there any way to size that drag?

知道了。有什麼辦法可以調整阻力大小嗎？

We'll look to give you more color there as it relates to the fourth-quarter outlook. I think we've said before that we were seeing 60% to 70% depending on what time period you're looking at as it relates to fixed annuity flow if you have an estimate for what acquisition expenses are, you could see that.

我們將在第四季度展望方面為您提供更多細節。我想我們之前說過，根據你所檢視的時間段，固定年金流的佔比在 60% 到 70% 之間。如果你對收購費用有所估算，你就能看到這一點。

I think in this quarter, we had one month of retained -- actually, I think it was two months of retained fixed annuity flow on a 100% basis. So you can look at some of the expense line items there, but we'll get to something more detailed as it relates to the 2026 outlook.

我認為本季我們有一個月的留存固定年金流——實際上，我認為是兩個月的留存固定年金流，以 100% 計算。所以你可以看看其中的一些費用明細，但我們將在談到 2026 年展望時，再詳細討論一些相關內容。

Okay. Thanks.

好的。謝謝。

Alex Scott, Barclays.

亞歷克斯·斯科特，巴克萊銀行。

First one I've got for you is just on the topic of private credit. I'd be interested in what your take is on some of the, I guess, one-offs that have kind of popped up recently. And maybe just on to that, just your views of potentially growing into private credit as we're looking at the growth in your business, retaining more? I assume that comes with a little more private credit allocation to the Bain partnership.

我給你的第一個問題是關於私人信貸的。我很想知道你對最近出現的一些特例事件有什麼看法。或許可以就此談談，您對隨著公司業務成長而拓展私人信貸業務，並盡可能保留客戶資源有何看法？我猜想這會分配給貝恩合夥企業更多的私人信貸。

What is your comfort with the stability of that business and the quality of the assets you're putting on?

您對該公司的穩定性以及您投入的資產品質有何信心？

Yeah. So as it relates to the one-offs, we don't have a view, we don't really have exposure or an impact from some of the names in the headlines. What I would say is big picture, I think when you look at our portfolio relative to others, especially relative to others in the annuity space, we've been somewhat under allocated to different parts of the private credit and structured securities asset classes.

是的。所以就個別事件而言，我們沒有觀點，也沒有受到新聞頭條某些名字的影響。我想說的是，從大局來看，如果你看看我們的投資組合與其他投資組合相比，特別是與年金領域的其他投資組合相比，我們在私募信貸和結構化證券資產類別的不同部分配置不足。

We certainly have a good healthy allocation over the past 10 years, but we -- it hasn't been a focus of growth the way that it has for others just given the fact that we haven't been as big in some of the retained spread business historically. So my point is we feel really comfortable with our portfolio. You can look at the investment details that we give each quarter the credit quality is very stable. Our credit losses this quarter, you can see in the investor sub where I think one of the lowest quarters with (inaudible)?

過去 10 年，我們的資產配置確實相當健康，但與其他人相比，這並沒有成為我們發展的重點，原因在於我們歷史上在一些留存利差業務方面規模並不大。所以我的意思是，我們對我們的投資組合感到非常滿意。您可以查看我們每季提供的投資詳情，信貸品質非常穩定。您可以在投資者關係部分看到，本季我們的信貸損失是歷年來最低的季度之一。（聽不清楚）？

I mean, they're very, very de minimis and in line with the past two years, let's say. So we don't see any issues as it relates to the existing portfolio, as it relates to growing. Look, we're going to be thoughtful about it, right? We're going to apply the same discipline around portfolio construction and risk management that we've done before. And it's something that we think will be a driver, but it doesn't necessarily mean that we're going to be taking outsized risk.

我的意思是，這些影響非常非常小，而且與過去兩年的情況基本一致。因此，就現有投資組合而言，就成長而言，我們認為不存在任何問題。聽著，我們會認真考慮的，對吧？我們將繼續沿用以往在投資組合建構和風險管理方面所採取的嚴謹方法。我們認為這將是一個驅動因素，但這並不一定意味著我們會承擔過大的風險。

Got it. Helpful. Second one I had is on the [SG Well]. You mentioned optimizing that block further. And I just wanted to see if you could provide any extra color around some of the things you're considering? Are we talking about things that are more internal or external reinsurance. Any way you can help dimension that for us?

知道了。很有幫助。我擁有的第二個是…[SG Well]。你提到要進一步優化那個模組。我只是想看看您能否就您正在考慮的一些事情提供一些額外的細節？我們討論的是內部再保險還是外部再保險？能幫我們估算一下尺寸嗎？

Sure. And again, I think we'll have more to say next quarter when we give our outlook as we do every year. But Alex, what I would do is probably reiterate what we've said in the past. We think there's a number of ways to continue to optimize that block, some external, some internal. We think that the options as it relates to repositioning the asset portfolio would be a driver to free cash flow and NII over time.

當然。而且，我認為我們會在下個季度發布業績展望時再做更多說明，就像我們每年都會做的那樣。但是亞歷克斯，我可能會重申我們過去說過的話。我們認為有很多方法可以繼續優化這個模組，有些是外部的，有些是內部的。我們認為，與重新調整資產組合相關的選擇權將成為自由現金流和淨利息收入的長期驅動因素。

We've talked a lot about looking at our historical captive framework and looking for efficiencies there. We've talked about the potential to explore another external deal. So I think we went through this when we announced the Bain transaction, but all of those projects are in the work from an exploration perspective. Some we think will have real meaningful impact. Some we're still studying.

我們已經多次討論過檢視我們以往的自營體系，並尋找提高效率的方法。我們已經討論過探索另一項外部交易的可能性。所以我覺得我們在宣布貝恩交易時也經歷過這種情況，但從勘探的角度來看，所有這些項目都在進行中。我們認為其中一些將會產生真正有意義的影響。有些我們還在研究。

But at the end of the day, part of the capital as it relates to the Bain equity will be deployed to execute on a number of the things that we've discussed.

但歸根結底，與貝恩股權相關的部分資金將用於執行我們討論過的幾件事。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Wes Carmichael, Autonomous Research.

Wes Carmichael，自主研究。

I had a question on -- Ellen, your comments, just thinking about increasing the risk-adjusted ROE of the company and reducing volatility. Just wondering if there's any kind of new developments in terms of products that you want to lean into there? And I understand you've been growing Group Protection, but are there other kind of product areas you'd point to where ROE and cash flow are more attractive now?

我有個問題想請教大家——艾倫，關於你的評論，我正在考慮如何提高公司的風險調整後淨資產收益率並降低波動性。想問一下，在產品方面，你們有沒有什麼新的發展方向值得重點關注？我知道你們一直在發展團體保險業務，但是你們認為還有哪些產品領域目前在股本回報率和現金流方面更具吸引力呢？

So we really -- when we think about overall product, first of all, and expansion of product, everything that we're doing inside of each of our businesses is really to support our overall strategic and financial objectives. So the idea of continuing to really lean into places where we see, first of all, growing expandable markets and also additionally stable cash flow and higher risk-adjusted returns. So we really can take it case by case.

所以，當我們考慮整體產品、首先是產品擴展時，我們每個業務部門所做的一切，實際上都是為了支持我們的整體策略和財務目標。因此，我們的想法是繼續大力投資那些我們認為首先是具有成長潛力的市場，其次是具有穩定現金流和更高風險調整後收益的領域。所以我們可以具體問題具體分析。

So for example, we talked about really strong sales in the quarter in Life Insurance. And one of the places there was related to executive benefits. So I want to call out just a couple of things there. We had historically had a presence in executive benefits. But in the last year or so, as we really have been focusing on pivoting the entire life franchise, we really strengthened our overall offering.

例如，我們談到了本季人壽保險業務的強勁銷售情況。其中一個地方與高階主管福利有關。所以我想在這裡特別指出幾點。我們過去一直涉足高階主管福利領域。但在過去一年左右的時間裡，隨著我們真正專注於調整整個人壽保險業務，我們確實加強了我們的整體產品和服務。

We broadened our capabilities there. We continue to deepen our relationships on the distribution side. And we also built some necessary capabilities, dedicated resources, and you see that we put up a couple of large cases in the quarter. And at the same time, all of the sales that you see in the in the life portfolio as we continue to build momentum there are all products that we've leaned into. They're really emphasizing more accumulation and more limited guarantees that also will produce stable cash flows.

我們在那裡拓展了我們的能力。我們將繼續深化與分銷商的關係。我們也建立了一些必要的能力，投入了專門的資源，您可以看到，我們在本季度完成了幾個大項目。同時，隨著我們不斷增強發展勢頭，您在人壽保險產品組合中看到的所有銷售額，都是我們重點發展的產品。他們真正強調的是更多的資產累積和更有限的擔保，但這也將產生穩定的現金流。

So we have repriced and put up completely new products in the IOL space as an example, accumulation DOL is another example. And we also have a risk-sharing product in our MoneyGuard space. And at the same time, we're building tools that differentiate us for presale and post-sale. We've completely optimized the distribution footprint.

例如，我們已經在 IOL 領域重新定價並推出了全新的產品，累積式 DOL 就是另一個例子。此外，我們的 MoneyGuard 產品線也提供風險分擔產品。同時，我們正在開發能夠使我們在售前和售後脫穎而出的工具。我們已經徹底優化了分銷佈局。

In our Annuity business, one of the places where we believe that we're winning and one of the reasons why we continue to see strong sales, 32% year-over-year sales growth, is that in each of our product categories, we're continuing to expand. And there, we've got unique crediting strategies. We have unique index features. We commented already on Group Protection and really leaning into as an example, supplemental health.

在我們的年金業務中，我們認為我們成功的領域之一，也是我們持續實現強勁銷售（同比增長 32%）的原因之一，是我們在每個產品類別中都在不斷擴張。而且，我們還有獨特的信用策略。我們擁有獨特的索引功能。我們已經討論過團體保障，並以補充醫療保險為例進行了深入探討。

And then I'll just call out in Retirement Plan Services. One of the things that is driving our strong sales in the quarter. Our small market sales were up 24%. And there, we're leaning into pooled employer plans, and that has also -- that some of the higher-margin parts of the Retirement business and our stable value investment only was up more than 2 times. And there, we developed a new product as well that was shorter duration.

然後我就直接打電話給退休計畫服務部門。這是推動本季銷售強勁成長的因素之一。我們的小市場銷售額成長了 24%。而且，我們正在大力發展集合雇主計劃，這也使得退休業務中一些利潤較高的部分以及我們的穩定價值投資增長了 2 倍以上。在那裡，我們也開發了一種持續時間較短的新產品。

So -- and we will continue because it's part of our competitive advantage to really lean into new product, product expansion, very much listening to the voice of our customer and what the compelling value propositions are and then testing that alongside what meets our strategic and financial objectives.

所以——我們將繼續這樣做，因為真正重視新產品、產品擴張，認真傾聽客戶的聲音，了解哪些產品具有吸引力，以及哪些產品具有吸引力，然後將其與符合我們策略和財務目標的產品進行測試，這是我們競爭優勢的一部分。

Got it. Thank you. And maybe a more detailed question. But I think, Chris, you mentioned a $50 million dividend out of Len bar. I think it's been a little while since you executed on taking money from that. subsidiary, and I appreciate you may want to share more next quarter with the outlook. But is there an annual expected level of dividends out of that sub? And how much, I guess, do you think it might fluctuate if we get a little more volatility with the macro?

知道了。謝謝。或許可以問一個更詳細的問題。但我想，克里斯，你提到Len bar公司將派發5000萬美元的股息。我認為您已經有一段時間沒有從那家子公司提取資金了，我很感激您可能希望在下個季度分享更多關於業績展望的資訊。但該子項目是否有預期的年度分紅水準？那麼，如果宏觀經濟出現更多波動，您認為它可能會波動多大呢？

So what I would say is the $50 million dividend is consistent with what we took last year. And frankly, to your specific question, we saw a lot of volatility in April and May. And so it's actually a good testament to the effectiveness of the hedge strategy. And the overall dynamics as it relates to the way that we operate our variable annuity risk that we were able to take another $50 million dividend this year.

所以我認為，5000萬美元的股息與我們去年獲得的股息是一致的。坦白說，就你提出的具體問題而言，我們在四月和五月看到了很大的波動。因此，這實際上很好地證明了對沖策略的有效性。而與我們營運可變年金風險相關的整體動態，使得我們今年能夠再獲得 5,000 萬美元的股利。

I think longer term, as we build excess capital in different parts of the organization, you would expect to see some growth in dividends. As a reminder, we also have our Bermuda affiliate, which is now over a year in the operational phase. So I would say, over time, I would expect growth in dividends from all of our entities, but the fact is that this year was very in line with last year as it relates to the LINBAR dividend.

我認為從長遠來看，隨著我們在組織的不同部門累積過剩資本，預計股息會有所增長。再次提醒大家，我們還有一家百慕達附屬公司，目前已經營運一年多了。因此，我認為，隨著時間的推移，我們所有實體的股息都會成長，但事實上，就 LINBAR 的股息而言，今年與去年非常一致。

Thank you.

謝謝。

Tom Gallagher, Evercore.

Tom Gallagher，Evercore。

Just a few questions on Group Protection. Chris, if I follow what you were saying, it sounds like you think the higher severity trends in disability should improve. But the lower claim recoveries is probably going to continue. And I think you said it was 50-50 in terms of the impact on the loss ratio between those 2 things.

關於團體保險，我有幾個問題。克里斯，如果我理解沒錯的話，你似乎認為殘疾程度較高的趨勢應該會有所改善。但較低的理賠回收率可能還會持續下去。我想你說過，這兩件事對損失率的影響各佔一半。

So having said all that, is it reasonable to assume the trend into Q4 that's embedded in your guidance should be improvement in the group disability loss ratio by -- if we had to pick a number, something like 3 points, but then partly offset by higher group life loss ratio just because that was so favorable.

綜上所述，是否可以合理地假設，您預測中體現的第四季度趨勢是團體殘疾損失率改善——如果非要選一個數字，大概改善3個百分點——但隨後由於團體人壽損失率的提高而部分抵消這一改善，僅僅因為後者非常有利？

Yeah. So Tom, what I would say is -- first point, this is just a nit, but I wouldn't really call the severity impact the trend. It was one month, and that can happen from time to time. So for what it's worth, I mean, it was more volatility than the trend. But that's right. I mean, you have the math right, it was about half of the disability loss ratio growth due to that dynamic and the other half due to trend.

是的。所以湯姆，我想說的是──第一點，這只是個小問題，但我不會把嚴重程度稱為影響趨勢。歷時一個月，這種情況偶爾也會發生。所以，就其價值而言，我的意思是，波動性大於趨勢性。沒錯。我的意思是，你的計算沒錯，殘疾損失率的增長大約有一半是由於這種動態因素造成的，另一半是由於趨勢造成的。

So if you move from third quarter to fourth quarter, as I mentioned in the prepared remarks, we would normalize for that volatility but then you also have seasonality that happens in the fourth quarter relative to third quarter for disability. So just keep that in mind. I would say that a loss ratio that's slightly in line with third quarter to maybe up a little bit, depending on the degree of seasonality would be a decent expectation for the disability loss ratio consistent with what we've seen in the past.

因此，正如我在準備好的發言稿中提到的，如果從第三季度過渡到第四季度，我們會對這種波動進行正常化處理，但殘疾情況在第四季度相對於第三季度也存在季節性變化。所以請記住這一點。我認為，根據季節性因素的程度，殘疾損失率與第三季度基本持平或略有上升，這將是一個合理的預期，與我們過去所看到的狀況一致。

Got you. That's a good point on the seasonality. The -- and then I guess, just a follow up, what are you guys seeing in pricing now? You've clearly had pretty good growth in Group Protection. What are you seeing on '26 renewals for rate? Are things softening a bit? Are they stable firming?

抓到你了。關於季節性這一點，你說得很有道理。然後──我想再問一個後續問題，你們現在看到的價格走勢如何？顯然，你們在團體保險領域取得了相當不錯的成長。您在「26 年續約費率」方面看到了什麼？情況有緩和嗎？它們是否穩定且牢固？

So Tom, we will continue to message what we've said in the past, which is it is very competitive out there. It always has been, and it's also rational at the same time. We are continuing to see a strong cycle as it relates to going into the fourth quarter. We are going to continue to lean into prioritizing profitable growth over top-line growth.

所以湯姆，我們將繼續傳達我們過去說過的話，那就是外面的競爭非常激烈。一直以來都是如此，同時也是合乎邏輯的。我們看到，進入第四季後，經濟週期依然強勁。我們將繼續優先考慮獲利成長而非營收成長。

And so you'll see us really focusing on leaning into the places, in particular, where we see further opportunity in local markets, as an example, supplemental health, as we called out, earlier. And just in general, we would expect that -- you may recall that last year's annual cycle was particularly strong and active across the entire industry. So I think it's fair to expect that you will likely see less activity as we move into the fourth quarter.

因此，你會看到我們真正專注於那些我們認為在當地市場有更大機會的地方，例如，正如我們之前提到的補充醫療保健領域。總的來說，我們預計——您可能還記得，去年的年度週期在整個行業中非常強勁和活躍。所以我認為，隨著我們進入第四季度，預計市場活動將會減少是合理的。

Got you. And Ellen, sorry, one quick follow up on that. So you would expect maybe not as strong as sales but then better retention. Is that a way to think about the trade-off of that?

抓到你了。艾倫，不好意思，還有一個問題要補充說明。所以你可能會預期銷售額不會像銷售那麼強勁，但客戶留存率會更高。這是思考這種權衡取捨的一種方式嗎？

So we have seen much improved persistency, while putting rate increases through at the same time. And I think a lot of this really speaks to all of the infrastructure, technology, and customer service capabilities that we have invested in along the way.

因此，我們看到貸款持續性大大提高，同時我們也提高了利率。我認為這很大程度上反映了我們一路以來在基礎設施、技術和客戶服務能力方面的投資。

Just to give you an example, if -- when we create the infrastructure so that we are -- we have technology that is now connecting directly into our customers. And we build an infrastructure with them, and we're supporting them in terms of ease and access. We just become much more of a long-term partner.

舉個例子來說，如果我們創建了基礎設施，使我們擁有了可以直接連接到客戶的技術。我們與他們一起建立基礎設施，並在便利性和可近性方面為他們提供支援。我們之間的關係會變得更長期化。

And so we've invested in that. It's supporting us in terms of really being able to have more persistent client base, and continuing to build on additional digital tools to enable us to just have longer relationships with our customers.

所以我們已經在這方面進行了投資。它幫助我們真正擁有更穩定的客戶群，並不斷開發更多數位工具，使我們能夠與客戶建立更長久的關係。

Okay. Thank you.

好的。謝謝。

That concludes our question-and-answer session. I will now turn the call back over to Tina for closing remarks.

我們的問答環節到此結束。現在我將把電話交還給蒂娜，請她作總結發言。

Thank you, everyone, for joining our call today. If you have any follow-up questions, please don't hesitate to reach out at investorrelations@lfg.com. Thank you for your time.

感謝各位今天參加我們的電話會議。如有任何後續問題，請隨時與我們聯繫：investorrelations@lfg.com。感謝您的時間。

Ladies and gentlemen, this concludes today's call. Thank you all for joining. You may now disconnect.

女士們、先生們，今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝各位的參與。您現在可以斷開連線了。