Lincoln National Corp (LNC) 2025 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good morning, and thank you for joining Lincoln Financial's 2025 Second Quarter Earnings Call. (Operator Instructions)

早安，感謝您參加林肯金融 2025 年第二季財報電話會議。（操作員指示）

Now I would like to turn the call over to the Senior Vice President, Head of Investor Relations, Tina Madon. Please go ahead.

現在我想將電話轉給高級副總裁、投資者關係主管蒂娜·馬登 (Tina Madon)。請繼續。

Thank you. Good morning, everyone, and welcome to our second quarter earnings call. We appreciate your interest in Lincoln. Our quarterly 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 in today's call, including adjusted income from operations or adjusted operating income and adjusted income from operations available to common stockholders to their most comparable GAAP measures.

謝謝。大家早安，歡迎參加我們的第二季財報電話會議。感謝您對林肯的關注。我們的季度新聞稿、收益補充和統計補充均可在我們網站 www.lincolnfinancial.com 的投資者關係頁面上找到。這些文件包含今日電話會議中使用的非公認會計準則 (non-GAAP) 指標的對帳表，包括調整後營業利潤或調整後營業利潤以及普通股股東可獲得的調整後營業利潤與其最可比較的公認會計準則 (GAAP) 指標的對帳表。

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.

在我們開始之前，我想提醒您，今天電話會議上做出的任何有關預期、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、費用、營業收入、自由現金流或自由現金流轉換比率、股票回購、流動性和資本資源有關的陳述，根據 1995 年《私人證券訴訟改革法》，均為前瞻性陳述。

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. 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.

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收益報告中的警示聲明披露中所述的風險和不確定性，以及我們 2024 年 10-K 表年度報告、10-Q 表最新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述的風險和不確定性。這些前瞻性陳述僅截至今天作出，我們不承擔更新或修改任何陳述以反映今天之後發生的事件或情況的義務。

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.

今天早上出席演講的是董事長、總裁兼執行長 Ellen Cooper 和財務長 Chris Neczypor。在他們發表準備好的發言後，我們將回答您的問題。

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

現在讓我把電話轉給艾倫。埃倫？

Thank you, Tina, and good morning, everyone. We appreciate you joining our call today. Our second quarter performance was strong with adjusted operating income increasing 32% year-over-year, underscoring the progress we have made as we advance our growth strategy with discipline and focus across Lincoln.

謝謝你，蒂娜，大家早安。感謝您今天參加我們的電話會議。我們第二季的業績表現強勁，調整後的營業收入年增 32%，凸顯了我們在林肯以紀律和專注度推進成長策略所取得的進展。

Before I walk through the quarter's highlights, I wanted to step back and reflect on what we have accomplished since we began this journey at the beginning of 2023. The fundamental principles of foundational capital, an optimized operating model and a strategy for profitable growth are coming through in our results. With clear evidence of building momentum balanced against a strategic awareness of where more work needs to be done.

在回顧本季的亮點之前，我想先回顧一下自 2023 年初開始這段旅程以來我們所取得的成就。基礎資本的基本原則、優化的營運模式和獲利成長策略都體現在我們的業績中。有明顯的證據表明，建設動力與需要做更多工作的策略意識相平衡。

We have evolved the direction of the company with a 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 benefit of those actions.

我們改變了公司的發展方向，重點是提高風險調整後的資本回報率、降低績效波動性並擴大特許經營權，並且我們開始看到這些行動的好處。

A few highlights worth noting. This marks the fourth consecutive quarter of year-over-year adjusted operating income growth. It's the seventh consecutive quarter with an estimated RBC ratio in excess of our target of 400% and the fifth quarter in a row with an estimated RBC ratio exceeding our 20-percentage-point buffer. Over the past several years, we have also made significant progress in optimizing our operating model, creating a more efficient and scalable organization. We have reduced expenses, streamlined processes and enhanced our digital capabilities, while strategically investing in talent and infrastructure in each of our businesses.

有幾個亮點值得注意。這是調整後營業收入連續第四個季度年增。這是連續第七個季度 RBC 比率估計值超過我們 400% 的目標，也是連續第五個季度 RBC 比率估計值超過我們 20 個百分點的緩衝。過去幾年，我們在優化營運模式方面也取得了重大進展，創造了一個更有效率、更具可擴展性的組織。我們降低了開支，簡化了流程，增強了數位化能力，同時對每個業務領域的人才和基礎設施進行了策略性投資。

We have also advanced our investment strategy and launched our Bermuda-based reinsurance subsidiary. Becoming a leaner, more efficient organization strengthens our ability to deploy capital more effectively, elevate the customer experience and respond to market opportunities with greater agility. At the same time, each of our businesses has made progress on strategies to shift to products and segments with higher margins, more stable cash flow profiles and greater capital efficiency. The first half of this year saw all four businesses deliver double-digit sales growth, a portion of which came from products that have historically not been key drivers for Lincoln.

我們也推進了投資策略，並成立了位於百慕達的再保險子公司。成為一個更精簡、更有效率的組織，增強了我們更有效地部署資本、提升客戶體驗和更靈活地應對市場機會的能力。同時，我們的各項業務在策略上均取得了進展，轉向利潤率更高、現金流狀況更穩定、資本效率更高的產品和細分市場。今年上半年，四大業務的銷售額均實現了兩大成長，其中一部分成長來自於歷史上並非林肯主要驅動力的產品。

Underneath the surface, we continue to increase the core capital generation of the company, investing that capital in areas that are expected to sharpen our competitive advantages, broaden our strategic moat and drive growth in our free cash flow over the longer term. Results will not be linear. Markets can be volatile and the economic backdrop could change, but we remain steadfast in our commitment to deliver results that drive long-term value. Our momentum is building. Our track record is increasingly evident and we're excited about the path forward.

從表面來看，我們繼續增加公司的核心資本生成，將這些資本投資於有望增強我們的競爭優勢、拓寬我們的策略護城河並推動我們長期自由現金流成長的領域。結果不會是線性的。市場可能會波動，經濟背景可能會發生變化，但我們始終堅定不移地致力於實現能夠推動長期價值的成果。我們的勢頭正在增強。我們的業績越來越明顯，我們對未來的道路充滿期待。

Now turning to the highlights for the quarter. Our results this quarter demonstrate that the strategic repositioning of each of our businesses is beginning to translate into improved fundamentals, supported by a more diverse and profitable business mix. Key highlights at the segment level included our Group Protection business, which delivered a record quarter for earnings and its highest-ever margin. Annuities generated its third highest sales quarter, supported by a more diverse and balanced product mix. Retirement Plan Services saw a year-over-year increase in total deposits resulting from strong first year sales growth. Life insurance achieved positive earnings driven by favorable mortality and improved expenses.

現在來看看本季的亮點。本季的業績表明，在更加多樣化和盈利能力更強的業務組合的支持下，我們各項業務的策略重新定位開始轉化為基本面的改善。該部門的重點亮點包括我們的團體保護業務，該業務創造了創紀錄的季度收益和歷史最高利潤率。由於更多樣化和均衡的產品組合，年金產品創造了第三高的銷售量。由於第一年的銷售額強勁成長，退休計畫服務的總存款較去年同期成長。受死亡率下降和費用改善的推動，人壽保險實現了正收益。

Now turning to our business results, starting with retail solutions, which includes annuities and life insurance. Annuities produced robust sales of $4 billion, a 6% sequential increase supported by our ongoing focus on building and sustaining a diversified product mix. Spread-based products comprised two-thirds of the overall mix with fixed annuity sequential growth of 41% and RILA's sequential growth of 12%. Each of our three major product categories exceeded $1 billion in sales. And additionally, all sales in the quarter supported our strategic and financial goals with strong profitability and capital efficiency.

現在談談我們的業務成果，從零售解決方案開始，其中包括年金和人壽保險。年金業務實現了 40 億美元的強勁銷售額，環比成長 6%，這得益於我們持續致力於建立和維持多元化的產品組合。利差型產品佔整體產品的三分之二，其中固定年金連續成長 41%，RILA 連續成長 12%。我們的三大產品類別的銷售額均超過 10 億美元。此外，本季的所有銷售額都以強勁的獲利能力和資本效率支持了我們的策略和財務目標。

We continue to lean into our distribution leadership where we have the reach and scale to leverage our long-standing relationships, offer a compelling value proposition and broaden our addressable markets enabling us to reach more customers seeking to retire with confidence and financial security. Our distribution partners deeply appreciate our customer-centric approach which is designed to equip producers with the insights, tools and capabilities to enhance productivity and ease of doing business.

我們將繼續依靠我們的分銷領導層，我們擁有廣泛的影響力和規模，可以利用我們長期的關係，提供引人注目的價值主張，並拓寬我們的潛在市場，使我們能夠接觸到更多尋求充滿信心和財務安全退休的客戶。我們的經銷合作夥伴非常欣賞我們以客戶為中心的方法，該方法旨在為生產商提供洞察力、工具和能力，以提高生產力和簡化經營方式。

Our scalable support model helps partners grow their businesses through marketing and training assistance, a smooth and automated sales process and ongoing high-quality customer service. The breadth of products we offer in fixed RILA and variable annuities is also a key competitive strength, reinforcing Lincoln as a holistic solutions provider that can adapt to customer preferences in various market environments.

我們可擴展的支援模式透過行銷和培訓援助、順暢自動化的銷售流程以及持續的高品質客戶服務幫助合作夥伴發展業務。我們在固定 RILA 和可變年金中提供的廣泛產品也是一項關鍵的競爭優勢，鞏固了林肯作為能夠適應各種市場環境中客戶偏好的整體解決方案提供者的地位。

As I previously mentioned, our fixed annuity sales increased by 41% sequentially as we continue to leverage the foundational capabilities we built to sustain a consistent and growing presence in the fixed marketplace, including investment strategy enhancements, distribution expansion and capital efficient reinsurance, optimizing our mix of internal and external reinsurance and retaining a greater portion of our spread-based earnings will further accelerate the profitability and risk-adjusted returns of our overall annuities business.

正如我之前提到的，我們的固定年金銷售額環比增長了 41%，因為我們繼續利用我們建立的基礎能力來維持在固定市場中的持續和不斷增長的地位，包括投資策略的增強、分銷的擴大和資本效率的再保險，優化我們的內部和外部再保險組合，並保留更大比例的基於利差的收益，這將進一步盈利的回報

RILA generated a fifth consecutive quarter of sales in excess of $1 billion and the fifth consecutive quarter of sequential growth as we maintained momentum with a strong competitive position in this market. The continued growth in sales was driven by our ability to differentiate through unique features and crediting rate strategies as our second-generation RILA product continues to resonate with customers. We also benefited from further leveraging our distribution leadership to expand in targeted channels to drive additional market penetration and growth.

RILA 連續第五個季度的銷售額超過 10 億美元，並連續第五個季度實現環比增長，我們在該市場保持了強勁的競爭地位。隨著我們的第二代 RILA 產品繼續引起客戶的共鳴，銷售額的持續成長得益於我們透過獨特功能和信用率策略實現差異化的能力。我們也受益於進一步利用我們的分銷領導地位來擴展目標管道，以推動額外的市場滲透和成長。

Finally, traditional variable annuities remain integral to the diversification of our product suite, producing strong free cash flows and risk-adjusted returns, while delivering a compelling customer value proposition. In summary, these results reflect 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.

最後，傳統的變額年金仍然是我們產品套件多樣化不可或缺的一部分，它可以產生強勁的自由現金流和風險調整後的回報，同時提供引人注目的客戶價值主張。總而言之，這些結果反映了我們在提供多樣化產品組合方面的成功，該組合可以滿足不同生命階段、風險承受能力和經濟環境的客戶的需求。

This strategy to diversify our mix to more spread-based earnings translates into more predictable and resilient cash flows over time, while meeting our risk-adjusted return targets and balancing the financial contribution across products. We remain confident in our strategic trajectory and our ability to leverage our competitive strengths to achieve our profitability and return objectives.

這種將我們的產品組合多樣化以獲得更多基於利差的收益的策略，隨著時間的推移會轉化為更可預測和更具彈性的現金流，同時滿足我們的風險調整回報目標並平衡各個產品的財務貢獻。我們對我們的策略軌跡以及利用競爭優勢來實現獲利和回報目標的能力充滿信心。

Now turning to Life Insurance. In our retail life business, we've taken decisive steps to reposition the franchise for long-term value creation. We have intentionally been pivoting towards accumulation and protection products with more risk sharing and have been building out product features to expand our solution set, positioning us for future growth.

現在轉向人壽保險。在我們的零售生活業務中，我們已採取果斷措施重新定位特許經營權，以實現長期價值創造。我們有意轉向具有更多風險分擔的累積和保護產品，並一直在建立產品功能以擴展我們的解決方案集，為未來的成長做好準備。

A key part of this transformation is our distribution evolution. We focused on building a distribution footprint that sits closer to the financial professional. This proximity better positions us to provide support to our customers by giving us sharper insights, more streamlined connectivity and enhanced efficiency in reaching our target segments, which is expected to support durable growth.

這項轉變的關鍵部分是我們的分銷變革。我們專注於建立更貼近金融專業人士的分銷足跡。這種接近性使我們能夠更好地為客戶提供支持，讓我們能夠獲得更敏銳的洞察力、更簡化的連接並提高到達目標市場的效率，預計這將支持持久的成長。

Sales increased 15% year-over-year and 25% sequentially with broad-based momentum across our products as our actions over the last several years begin to take hold. On a year-over-year basis, we saw executive benefits, which can vary from period to period, continued to gain traction with sales in this segment tripling. We value this business as a product category where we have strong competitive positioning and one that also generates more predictable cash flows.

隨著我們過去幾年採取的行動開始取得成效，銷售額年增 15%，環比增長 25%，所有產品均呈現廣泛增長勢頭。與去年同期相比，我們看到高階主管福利（雖然每個時期都會有所不同）持續成長，而該部門的銷售額則成長了兩倍。我們重視這項業務，因為它是我們具有強大競爭優勢並且能夠產生更可預測的現金流的產品類別。

We're also seeing continued momentum in IUL where we're growing our addressable market through enhanced products, expanded distribution access and new digital tools to enhance the client experience. It's another area where we're leaning in to capture future growth while staying disciplined on achieving risk-adjusted returns.

我們也看到 IUL 持續保持成長勢頭，我們透過增強產品、擴大分銷管道和新的數位工具來擴大我們的潛在市場，以增強客戶體驗。這是我們傾向抓住未來成長機會的另一個領域，同時也要嚴格控制風險調整後的報酬。

Overall, our retail life strategy is grounded in a clear focus shift our mix towards products and channels that support our long-term enterprise objectives, including compelling value propositions for our customers, efficient capital deployment and focused future growth. As I have previously highlighted, the repositioning of our life business will continue to take time. However, we are confident that leveraging our strengths in product, distribution and underwriting to support our customers will increase our competitive differentiation and drive higher earnings growth.

總體而言，我們的零售生活策略以明確的重點為基礎，將我們的產品組合轉向支持我們長期企業目標的產品和管道，包括為客戶提供引人注目的價值主張、高效的資本配置和專注的未來成長。正如我之前強調的那樣，我們人壽業務的重新定位仍將需要時間。然而，我們相信，利用我們在產品、分銷和承保方面的優勢來支持我們的客戶將增加我們的競爭差異並推動更高的獲利成長。

Next, turning to Workplace Solutions, which includes our Group Protection and Retirement Plan Services businesses. As I mentioned earlier, Group delivered another record quarter, and we are very pleased with the strategic momentum of this business. Earnings grew by 33% year-over-year and the margin increased by 250 basis points to 12.5%. These results highlight our disciplined execution in diversifying this business through targeted segment and product strategies, while prioritizing profitable growth as we position Group to become a sustained, larger portion of Lincoln's overall earnings mix.

接下來，轉向工作場所解決方案，其中包括我們的團體保護和退休計畫服務業務。正如我之前提到的，集團又創下了新季度紀錄，我們對該業務的戰略勢頭感到非常滿意。收益年增 33%，利潤率增加 250 個基點至 12.5%。這些結果凸顯了我們透過有針對性的細分市場和產品策略來實現業務多元化的嚴謹執行，同時優先考慮獲利成長，使集團成為林肯整體獲利結構中持續更大的一部分。

Premiums grew 7% year-over-year, supported by robust sales and continued strong persistency. These outcomes reflect our disciplined approach to pricing, which is a cornerstone of our strategy for growth in competitive markets both for new business and renewals. They also reflect the benefits of the investments we have made in our operating service and claims models as well as the execution of our segment level strategy which has resulted in an expanded market presence.

受強勁銷售和持續強勁的持續性支撐，保費年增 7%。這些結果反映了我們嚴謹的定價方法，這是我們在新業務和續約業務競爭市場中實現成長的策略基石。它們也反映了我們在營運服務和索賠模式方面所做的投資以及我們執行的細分策略所帶來的好處，從而擴大了市場份額。

Sales increased by 16% year-over-year. At a segment level, local markets drove most of this growth as our momentum in the space continues to accelerate. Building a consistent presence in this market represents significant growth opportunity while supporting our profitability objectives.

銷售額較去年同期成長16%。從細分市場來看，隨著我們在該領域的發展勢頭持續加速，本地市場推動了大部分成長。在這個市場中建立持續的存在代表著巨大的成長機會，同時也支持我們的獲利目標。

Central to the success we are achieving are the targeted investments we have made over the last two years to grow this segment and deepen our ability to deliver on what customers consider most important, integrated solutions that emphasize ease, access and efficiency. We have also invested in a broader, more comprehensive product suite that deepens our value proposition to local market employers.

我們成功的關鍵在於過去兩年來我們為發展這一領域而進行的有針對性的投資，並深化我們提供客戶認為最重要的、強調便利性、可訪問性和效率的整合解決方案的能力。我們也投資了更廣泛、更全面的產品套件，以深化我們對當地市場雇主的價值主張。

Additionally, we continue to make consistent progress in our other segments growing and retaining our customers, which reinforces the durability of the strategy that we have been implementing over the last few years.

此外，我們在其他領域繼續取得持續進展，增加並留住客戶，這增強了我們過去幾年實施的策略的持久性。

In our Regional segment, we are sustaining a strong position by deepening strategic broker partnerships to better support employers and their benefit decisions. We are making ongoing investments in an improved customer experience through expanded digital capabilities and a deeper product portfolio with a focus on supplemental health and leave management.

在我們的區域部門，我們透過深化策略經紀人合作夥伴關係來維持強勢地位，以更好地支持雇主及其福利決策。我們正在透過擴展數位功能和更深入的產品組合（重點是補充健康和休假管理）持續投資以改善客戶體驗。

In our National segment, we are leveraging our expertise in combining product breadth, including supplemental health products, consultative guidance and more digital engagement tools to provide high-quality customer service, strengthen our competitive differentiation and drive sustained and profitable growth.

在我們的國家部門，我們利用我們的專業知識結合產品廣度，包括補充保健產品、諮詢指導和更多的數位參與工具，以提供高品質的客戶服務，增強我們的競爭差異化，並推動持續獲利成長。

On a product basis, sales of supplemental health products to both new and existing customers increased meaningfully this quarter, supported by the investments in our distribution and service models as well as enhancements to our product features. Our suite of supplemental health products is a key focus given its strong customer value proposition, attractive margins and significant growth potential compared to our traditional offerings.

從產品角度來看，本季度，得益於我們對分銷和服務模式的投資以及產品功能的增強，補充保健產品對新舊客​​戶的銷售額均有顯著增長。我們的補充保健產品套件是我們關注的重點，因為與我們的傳統產品相比，它具有強大的客戶價值主張、誘人的利潤率和巨大的成長潛力。

This quarter's results reinforce our confidence in the sustained growth and earnings potential of our group business with a strong foundation, disciplined execution, including pricing, and meaningful opportunities to further expand in its addressable markets, group is positioned to continue to be an increasingly meaningful driver of our earnings and free cash flow growth.

本季的業績增強了我們對集團業務持續成長和獲利潛力的信心，憑藉強大的基礎、嚴格的執行（包括定價）以及進一步擴展其目標市場的重大機會，集團將繼續成為我們盈利和自由現金流增長日益重要的推動力。

Now turning to Retirement Plan Services, or RPS. RPS' first year sales increased by nearly 50% year-over-year, driven by stable value sales and total deposits increased by 10%. As we look ahead, we have a strong pipeline of known wins, which we anticipate will materialize in the second half of this year. This sales momentum demonstrates that the offerings in our core recordkeeping and institutional market segments are resonating with customers.

現在轉向退休計劃服務（RPS）。RPS 第一年的銷售額年增近 50%，這得益於穩定價值的銷售額和總存款增加 10%。展望未來，我們擁有大量已知的勝利，預計這些勝利將在今年下半年實現。這一銷售勢頭表明，我們在核心記錄保存和機構市場領域提供的產品正引起客戶的共鳴。

We remain focused on initiatives to strengthen our operational and service capabilities in RPS as we advance our objective to build sustainable and profitable growth in this business over the long term. In closing, we remain steadfast in our commitment to deliver sustainable long-term value for our shareholders. The progress we've made is not only reflected in our financial performance, but also in the strategic clarity with which we are executing.

我們將繼續專注於加強 RPS 的營運和服務能力，以實現長期實現該業務可持續獲利成長的目標。最後，我們堅定不移地致力於為股東提供可持續的長期價值。我們所取得的進步不僅體現在我們的財務表現上，也體現在我們執行的策略清晰度上。

The strength of our operating model and the resilience of our capital position. We are deepening our strategic moat, shifting to higher-margin, capital-efficient growth, investing in areas that sharpen our competitive edge and evolving into a more agile, scalable organization. We are building a stronger Lincoln grounded in a more resilient foundation and positioned to realize greater potential, a market-leading franchise shaped by disciplined transformation.

我們的營運模式的實力和資本狀況的彈性。我們正在深化我們的策略性護城河，轉向利潤率更高、資本效率更高的成長，投資於能夠增強我們競爭優勢的領域，並發展成為一個更靈活、更具可擴展性的組織。我們正在打造一個更強大的林肯，以更具彈性的基礎為基礎，並致力於發揮更大的潛力，透過嚴謹的轉型打造一個市場領先的特許經營企業。

We are better positioned to operate in a dynamic environment, align capital deployment with strategic priorities and unlock value where we've built momentum and scale. We are energized by our strong trajectory and confident in our path forward.

我們更有能力在動態環境中運營，使資本部署與策略重點保持一致，並在我們建立動力和規模的地方釋放價值。我們對自己強勁的發展軌跡充滿活力，對前進的道路充滿信心。

And with that, I will turn the call over to Chris.

說完這些，我會把電話轉給克里斯。

Thank you, Ellen, and good morning, everyone. Our second quarter results reflect another period of strong performance, locking our fourth consecutive quarter of year-over-year adjusted operating income growth. This consistent progress demonstrates the effectiveness of our strategy, the disciplined execution across our businesses and the sustained momentum we're generating throughout the enterprise.

謝謝你，艾倫，大家早安。我們第二季的業績反映了另一個強勁的表現時期，鎖定了我們連續第四個季度的年比調整後營業收入成長。這一持續的進步證明了我們策略的有效性、我們業務的嚴格執行以及我們在整個企業中產生的持續動力。

Collectively, our businesses made meaningful advancements on their strategic initiatives, further strengthening Lincoln's foundation to deliver increasingly stable cash flows and attractive risk-adjusted returns. We remain confident and encouraged by our trajectory as we continue positioning Lincoln for durable long-term success.

總體而言，我們的業務在戰略舉措上取得了有意義的進展，進一步加強了林肯的基礎，以實現日益穩定的現金流和具有吸引力的風調整後回報。我們對我們的發展軌跡充滿信心並受到鼓舞，我們將繼續為林肯的長期持久成功做好準備。

This morning, I'll focus on three areas. First, I'll walk through our consolidated results for the second quarter. Second, I'll go through the details of our segment level performance. And third, I'll provide a brief update on our capital position and investment portfolio. Let's begin with a recap of the quarter.

今天上午，我將重點談三個方面。首先，我將介紹我們第二季的綜合業績。其次，我將詳細介紹我們各個細分領域的表現。第三，我將簡單介紹我們的資本狀況和投資組合。讓我們先回顧一下本季的情況。

This morning, we reported second quarter adjusted operating income available to common stockholders of $427 million or $2.36 per diluted share. There were no significant items in the quarter. Additionally, our alternative investment returns were in line with expectations, delivering a 10% annualized return or $101 million.

今天上午，我們報告了第二季普通股股東可獲得的調整後營業收入 4.27 億美元或每股攤薄收益 2.36 美元。本季沒有重大項目。此外，我們的另類投資回報符合預期，年化報酬率為 10%，即 1.01 億美元。

Turning to net income. We reported net income available to common stockholders of $688 million or $3.80 per diluted share. The difference between GAAP net income and adjusted operating income was driven primarily by the positive movement in market risk benefits amid a stable interest rate environment and higher equity markets, partially offset by a decline in the value of our related hedge instruments. Importantly, our hedge program explicitly targets capital. While the heightened equity market volatility in the early part of the quarter contributed to some variability in hedge items, performance was within the range of expectations given that level of volatility.

轉向淨收入。我們報告的普通股股東淨利潤為 6.88 億美元，即每股攤薄收益 3.80 美元。GAAP 淨收入與調整後營業收入之間的差異主要是由於穩定的利率環境和較高的股票市場導致市場風險收益的正向變動，但部分被我們相關對沖工具價值的下降所抵消。重要的是，我們的對沖計劃明確針對資本。雖然本季初股市波動加劇導致對沖項目出現一些變化，但考慮到這種波動程度，業績仍在預期範圍內。

Now turning to our segment results. Let's start with Group, which delivered a record quarter with operating earnings of $173 million, up 33% from $130 million in the prior year second quarter. And the margin was 12.5%, up 250 basis points for the same period.

現在談談我們的分部表現。首先從集團開始，集團本季的營業利潤創歷史新高，達到 1.73 億美元，較去年同期的 1.3 億美元成長 33%。利潤率為12.5%，同期上漲250個基點。

This record performance was driven by three primary factors: First, life results improved meaningfully year-over-year, driven by lower incidents and improved severity. While mortality outcomes can exhibit quarter-to-quarter volatility, we continue to see broad-based improvement consistent with our expectations. Second, disability results remained favorable, supported by an ongoing tight labor market, a still supportive interest rate environment and incidence levels that remain near historic lows.

這項創紀錄的業績主要得益於三個因素：首先，由於事故發生率降低和嚴重程度改善，人壽保險結果比去年同期顯著改善。雖然死亡率結果可能表現出季度波動，但我們仍然看到與我們的預期一致的全面改善。其次，受持續緊張的勞動市場、仍有利的利率環境以及接近歷史低點的發病率支撐，殘疾結果依然良好。

At the start of this year, we indicated that if LTD incidence rates reverted towards our longer-term expectations, it would represent roughly a 100-basis-point margin headwind in 2025. However, based on what we are currently observing, incidence rates continue to track favorably compared to quarterly expectations, and we anticipate maintaining a level of favorability in the third quarter. Should incidence rates revert towards historical levels, the anticipated margin headwind would remain. But as of now, these positive trends are persisting.

今年年初，我們曾表示，如果 LTD 發生率恢復到我們長期預期的水平，那麼到 2025 年，這將對利潤率造成約 100 個基點的不利影響。然而，根據我們目前的觀察，與季度預期相比，發病率繼續保持良好勢頭，我們預計第三季將保持良好的水平。如果發生率恢復到歷史水平，預期的利潤率阻力仍將存在。但截至目前，這些正面趨勢仍在持續。

And third, our strategic shift toward higher-margin business is driving sustained margin expansion. By broadening our customer base, diversifying our product portfolio and maintaining disciplined pricing, we continue to realize the anticipated benefits of these strategic actions.

第三，我們向高利潤業務的策略轉變正在推動利潤率的持續成長。透過擴大我們的客戶群、多樣化我們的產品組合和維持嚴格的定價，我們繼續實現這些策略行動的預期收益。

As we noted coming into the year, we anticipated this strategy alone would drive roughly 100 basis points of year-over-year margin improvement, and our results have been exceeding this expectation. Now turning to Group product line results for the quarter. Our life loss ratio improved considerably with the loss ratio declining to 67.2% compared to 75.6% in the second quarter of 2024, reflecting favorable incidents and favorable volatility with life severity. As we look ahead to the second half of the year, it's worth noting that our strong performance in the comparable period last year benefited from particularly favorable life experience and could result in a higher life loss ratio year-over-year, assuming a more normal mortality backdrop. The disability loss ratio also improved year-over-year, coming in at 64.2% compared with 65.9% in the prior-year quarter.

正如我們在年初所指出的，我們預計僅此一項策略就能推動利潤率同比提高約 100 個基點，而我們的業績已經超出了這一預期。現在來看看本季集團產品線的業績。我們的人壽損失率大幅改善，損失率從 2024 年第二季的 75.6% 下降至 67.2%，這反映了有利的事件和人壽嚴重程度的有利波動。展望下半年，值得注意的是，我們去年同期的強勁表現得益於特別有利的生命體驗，並且假設死亡率更加正常，則可能導致生命損失率同比上升。傷殘損失率也較去年同期有所改善，從去年同期的 65.9% 降至 64.2%。

This was driven by lower-than-anticipated incidence rates and strong claims management outcomes. Taking a step back and looking at the overall group business, we expect our margin for the second half of 2025 to be broadly in line with the margin achieved during the second half of 2024.

這是由於低於預期的發病率和強勁的索賠管理結果所致。退一步來看整個集團業務，我們預計 2025 年下半年的利潤率將與 2024 年下半年的利潤率大致持平。

Lastly, I'd like to briefly address the annual experience refund associated with one state's Paid Family leave program. In the past, this refund was recognized in the quarter it was received. For example, this quarter, we recorded a refund of $15 million compared to $23 million in the prior year period.

最後，我想簡要談談與某個州的帶薪家庭假計劃相關的年度經驗退款。過去，這筆退款是在收到退款的當季確認的。例如，本季我們記錄的退款為 1,500 萬美元，而去年同期的退款為 2,300 萬美元。

Prior to these two years, recognition often occurred in the third quarter. To better align recognition of this annual refund with the full year operations to which it relates and consistent with practices observed in the industry, we will accrue the refund on a quarterly basis going forward. This approach provides improved matching between the refund and our underlying business activity during the year. The quarterly accrual amounts will represent our best estimates and remains subject to annual adjustments.

在這兩年之前，確認通常發生在第三季。為了更好地將此年度退款確認與其相關的全年營運保持一致，並與行業慣例保持一致，我們將在未來按季度累計退款。這種方法可以提高退款與我們全年基本業務活動之間的匹配度。季度應計金額代表我們的最佳估計，並且每年都會進行調整。

Overall, our focused, disciplined execution and ongoing efforts to grow group protection into a larger and increasingly profitable segment within Lincoln's overall earnings mix remains a top priority. This quarter's record results further reinforce our conviction in the long-term growth potential, sustainability and strategic importance of the group business as we look ahead. Now turning to annuities. Annuities generated second quarter operating income of $287 million compared to operating income of $297 million in the prior year quarter. The decline was primarily driven by traditional variable annuity outflows, partially offset by ongoing growth in our spread income, which enhances our long-term earnings stability.

整體而言，我們專注、嚴謹的執行和持續的努力，將團體保護發展成為林肯整體獲利結構中更大、利潤越來越高的部分，仍然是我們的首要任務。本季創紀錄的業績進一步增強了我們對集團業務長期成長潛力、永續性和策略重要性的信心。現在轉向年金。年金第二季的營業收入為 2.87 億美元，而去年同期的營業收入為 2.97 億美元。下降的主要原因是傳統變額年金流出，但利差收入的持續成長部分抵消了這一下降，從而增強了我們的長期獲利穩定性。

Sequentially, earnings declined modestly from $290 million in the first quarter, reflecting lower average account balances. In the second quarter, average account balances net of reinsurance were roughly flat compared to the prior year quarter as strength in RILA where balances grew 13% was offset by traditional variable annuity net outflows.

與第一季相比，收益略有下降，為 2.9 億美元，反映出平均帳戶餘額較低。第二季度，扣除再保險後的平均帳戶餘額與去年同期基本持平，因為 RILA 的餘額增加了 13%，但被傳統可變年金淨流出所抵消。

Turning to spreads. Spread income continues to grow with spread-based products representing 28% of total annuity account balances net of reinsurance, a 2-percentage-point increase from a year ago. RILA account balances increased 15% over the prior year quarter and now represent 22% of total balances, also net of reinsurance. Net flows for spread-based products remained strong in the quarter, nearing $1 billion, underscoring steady progress in our strategic diversification.

轉向利差。利差收入持續成長，利差產品佔扣除再保險後年金帳戶總餘額的 28%，比一年前增加了 2 個百分點。RILA 帳戶餘額比去年同期增加了 15%，目前佔總餘額的 22%，也扣除了再保險。本季利差產品的淨流量保持強勁，接近 10 億美元，凸顯了我們策略多元化的穩定進展。

Lastly, ending account balances net of reinsurance, increased sequentially across all product lines and finished the quarter approximately 5% higher than the average balances during the period. This positions us favorably and provides a tailwind as we look toward the third quarter.

最後，扣除再保險後的期末帳戶餘額在所有產品線上均較上季增加，本季末餘額比同期平均餘額高出約 5%。這為我們進入第三季提供了有利條件，並為我們帶來了順風。

Overall, we remain confident in the strategic trajectory of our annuities business, supported by our strong capital position and our ability to drive sustainable quality earnings over the long term. Retirement Plan Services reported second quarter operating earnings of $37 million compared to $40 million in the prior year quarter, but sequentially up from $34 million in the first quarter.

整體而言，我們仍然對年金業務的策略發展軌跡充滿信心，這得益於我們強大的資本實力和長期推動永續優質收益的能力。退休計畫服務部報告第二季營業利潤為 3,700 萬美元，而去年同期為 4,000 萬美元，但比第一季的 3,400 萬美元有所上升。

Year-over-year results remained pressured from stable value outflows experienced over the past 12 months, partially offset by equity market favorability. Our base spread was 99 basis points in the quarter down 4 basis points sequentially and year-over-year, in part due to a onetime administrative adjustment impacting interest credited. As we look ahead to the second half of the year, we expect spreads to move back toward first quarter levels.

過去 12 個月經歷的穩定價值流出仍然給同比業績帶來壓力，但股票市場的利好部分抵消了這一影響。本季度，我們的基準利差為 99 個基點，比上一季和去年同期分別下降 4 個基點，部分原因是一次性行政調整影響了記入的利息。展望下半年，我們預期利差將回升至第一季的水平。

Net outflows totaled $585 million for the quarter, showing sequential improvement from $2.2 billion in outflows in the first quarter but remaining elevated year-over-year. With ongoing strength in sales momentum and pipeline activity, we anticipate overall net flows will turn positive in the third quarter.

本季淨流出總額為 5.85 億美元，較第一季的 22 億美元流出量較上季改善，但仍高於去年同期水準。隨著銷售動能和通路活動的持續強勁，我們預計第三季整體淨流量將轉為正值。

Account balances benefited from equity market performance with average account balances increasing 5% year-over-year. End-of-period balances reached $116 billion, up 7% sequentially and were 4% above the quarter's average account balance, providing a tailwind for earnings as we enter the third quarter. While the recent headwinds to stable value flows have more than offset the positive impacts of equity market-driven growth and expense discipline, we remain confident in the underlying growth of retirement plan services over the long term.

帳戶餘額受益於股票市場的表現，平均帳戶餘額較去年同期成長 5%。期末餘額達到 1160 億美元，環比增長 7%，比本季度平均帳戶餘額高出 4%，為我們進入第三季度時的盈利提供了助力。儘管近期穩定價值流面臨的阻力已經超過了股票市場驅動的成長和費用約束帶來的正面影響，但我們仍然對長期退休計畫服務的潛在成長充滿信心。

Lastly, turning to Life Insurance. Life reported operating earnings of $32 million for the second quarter reflecting substantial improvement compared to an operating loss of $35 million in the prior year quarter and sequential improvement from the operating loss of $16 million reported last quarter.

最後，談談人壽保險。人壽報告稱，第二季營業利潤為 3,200 萬美元，與去年同期 3,500 萬美元的營業虧損相比有大幅改善，與上一季報告的 1,600 萬美元的營業虧損相比也有環比改善。

The year-over-year and sequential improvements were broad-based driven by higher alternative investment returns, improved mortality and expense discipline. Mortality results for the quarter improved modestly, driven by lower claim incidents, while severity remained broadly in line with expectations. As previously noted, mortality can fluctuate quarter-to-quarter.

年比和季比的改善主要得益於另類投資報酬率的提高、死亡率的改善和費用控制的改善。由於索賠事件減少，本季死亡率略有改善，而嚴重程度仍與預期大致相符。如前所述，死亡率可能每季都會波動。

Turning to expenses. We continue to see year-over-year improvement, driven by disciplined expense management. Net G&A expenses declined 2% compared to the prior year quarter, reflecting sustained underlying efficiency. Maintaining expense discipline remains critical to supporting earnings improvement and profitable growth in Life. Annualized alternative investment returns for the quarter were 10%. As a reminder, alternative assets are a good fit for our life liabilities, and these assets provide important earnings support for the business.

談到費用。在嚴格的費用管理的推動下，我們繼續看到同比的改善。淨一般及行政開支較去年同期下降 2%，反映出持續的潛在效率。維持費用紀律對於支持人壽的獲利改善和利潤成長仍然至關重要。本季另類投資年化報酬率為 10%。提醒一下，另類資產非常適合我們的人壽負債，這些資產為企業提供了重要的獲利支持。

Overall, our second quarter performance was aligned with our expectations and reflects ongoing progress across key areas of the life business, improving mortality trends, higher alternative investment returns and effective expense management. While quarterly variability can occur, we remain confident in the underlying trajectory of our life business as we look towards the next few years. Now for a brief update on capital.

總體而言，我們第二季度的業績符合我們的預期，反映了人壽業務關鍵領域的持續進展、死亡率趨勢的改善、另類投資回報率的提高以及有效的費用管理。儘管季度變化可能會出現，但展望未來幾年，我們仍然對人壽保險業務的基本發展軌跡充滿信心。現在簡單介紹一下資本的最新情況。

We again ended the quarter with an estimated RBC ratio well above 420%, consistent with our strategy of maintaining a capital buffer above our 400% target. With our transaction with Bain Capital now closed, we have further strengthened our deployable excess capital position, enhancing our flexibility to strategically execute and invest across several priority areas.

本季結束時，我們再次將 RBC 比率估計為遠高於 420%，這與我們將資本緩衝維持在 400% 目標之上的策略一致。隨著我們與貝恩資本的交易完成，我們進一步加強了可部署的過剩資本狀況，增強了我們在多個優先領域進行策略執行和投資的靈活性。

As always, our disciplined approach will guide our deployment decisions. Given our strengthened position, I wanted to provide clarity on how to think about the deployment of this excess capital. If you think about some of the larger strategic objectives in transforming Lincoln, big picture, they can be categorized as one, growing group benefits to become a much larger piece of the overall Lincoln model.

像往常一樣，我們嚴謹的方法將指導我們的部署決策。鑑於我們的地位得到加強，我想明確如何考慮部署這些過剩資本。如果你考慮林肯轉型過程中的一些更大的戰略目標，從大局來看，它們可以歸類為一個目標，即不斷增長的團體利益，成為整個林肯模式中更大的一部分。

We've been deploying excess capital into this business over the past two years to invest in our capabilities and profitably grow and that trajectory will continue, but largely self-funded from the capital being generated from that business today. The second priority we've discussed is diversifying our annuity mix to be less dependent on variable and equity market risks and more leverage to growth in spread-based products.

過去兩年來，我們一直在向該業務投入過剩資本，以投資於我們的能力並實現盈利增長，並且這種軌跡將繼續下去，但主要資金來自目前該業務產生的資本。我們討論的第二個優先事項是使我們的年金組合多樣化，減少對變數和股票市場風險的依賴，並更多地利用基於利差的產品的成長。

Here, as we've mentioned, deploying excess capital can accelerate our goals, and it will come in two forms. The first is retaining more of the fixed business we sell today, and you'll start to see that in the fourth quarter. Reducing our reliance on flow reinsurance requires capital and a portion of the deployable excess capital we have today will be set aside to support this initiative.

正如我們所提到的，部署過剩資本可以加速實現我們的目標，它有兩種形式。首先是保留更多我們今天銷售的固定業務，您將在第四季度開始看到這一點。減少對流量再保險的依賴需要資本，我們今天擁有的部分可部署的過剩資本將被留出用於支持這項措施。

At the same time, growing the top line in RILA and fixed in a capital-efficient manner by leveraging LPine and with an increased competitive advantages as we onboard the Bain asset sourcing will also require capital, and we plan for that over the next few years. The third priority we've talked about is continuing to optimize our legacy life portfolio.

同時，透過利用 LPine 來增加 RILA 的營業額並以資本高效的方式進行固定，以及隨著我們加入貝恩資產採購而增強的競爭優勢也將需要資本，我們計劃在未來幾年內實現這一目標。我們討論的第三個優先事項是繼續優化我們的遺產生活組合。

This block remains the biggest drag on our overall free cash flow, though has improved considerably over the past two years, post the reinsurance deal and expense actions taken. Deploying excess capital towards this objective can take a number of different forms, rotating the asset mix, restructuring existing captives and lowering run rate operating costs we're exploring external reinsurance solutions. And the team is actively working across all these fronts to assess the best return on capital.

這項障礙仍然是我們整體自由現金流的最大拖累，儘管在過去兩年中，在採取再保險交易和費用行動後，情況已有顯著改善。為實現這一目標而部署過剩資本可以採取多種不同的形式，包括輪換資產組合、重組現有自保公司和降低營運成本，我們正在探索外部再保險解決方案。該團隊正在積極進行所有這些工作，以評估最佳資本回報率。

From a timing perspective, some of this excess capital will be deployed in third quarter and fourth quarter, while some may take through the end of next year. We're excited about the opportunity ahead of us and the ability to grow our free cash flow and deliver a more diversified higher risk-adjusted return set of earnings as a result. Now turning to our investment performance.

從時間角度來看，這些過剩資本有一部分將在第三季、第四季部署，有一部分可能要等到明年年底才能部署。我們對眼前的機會以及增加自由現金流並由此帶來更加多樣化、更高風險調整回報收益的能力感到興奮。現在來談談我們的投資績效。

Overall, we delivered solid performance again in the second quarter, reflecting the ongoing high quality and diversification of our portfolio. Our results underscore our continued strategic emphasis on investment optimization. We remain focused on executing strategic actions aligned with our enterprise priorities, particularly the growth of spread-based earnings.

總體而言，我們在第二季度再次取得了穩健的業績，反映了我們投資組合的持續高品質和多樣化。我們的績效凸顯了我們對投資優化的持續策略重視。我們仍然專注於執行符合企業優先事項的策略行動，特別是基於利差的收益的成長。

The onboarding of Bain Capital will enable us over time to deploy additional capital into structured and private strategies. These efforts complement broader initiatives to further optimize our investment portfolio while supporting objectives around sales growth, earnings potential and capital generation, including initiatives designed to enhance overall capital efficiency.

貝恩資本的加入將使我們能夠隨著時間的推移將更多資本投入結構化和私人策略。這些努力是對更廣泛措施的補充，旨在進一步優化我們的投資組合，同時支持圍繞銷售成長、獲利潛力和資本創造的目標，包括旨在提高整體資本效率的措施。

Lastly, our alternative investment portfolio achieved a 2.5% return this quarter, meeting our targeted level, driven by strong performance across all underlying strategies. In closing, our strong second quarter results reinforce Lincoln's accelerating momentum, highlighting continued earnings strength, disciplined capital management and focused execution on our strategic objectives. We've advanced our operating model to emphasize higher-margin, capital-efficient growth, enabling sustainable free cash flow generation and attractive risk-adjusted returns.

最後，受所有基礎策略強勁表現的推動，我們的另類投資組合本季實現了 2.5% 的回報率，達到了我們的目標水平。最後，我們強勁的第二季業績鞏固了林肯的加速發展勢頭，凸顯了持續的獲利實力、嚴格的資本管理以及對策略目標的專注執行。我們改進了營運模式，強調更高利潤率、資本高效的成長，實現可持續的自由現金流產生和有吸引力的風險調整回報。

Our strong capital position provides flexibility to strategically allocate resources not only to areas of established scale and profitability, but also to emerging opportunities that offer compelling prospects for profitable growth. We remain confident in our trajectory and our ability to deliver enduring shareholder value.

我們強大的資本實力使我們能夠靈活地將資源策略性地分配到既有規模和盈利能力的領域，而且還可以分配到具有良好盈利增長前景的新興機會。我們對我們的發展軌跡和為股東創造持久價值的能力充滿信心。

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

說完這些，讓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。讓我將電話轉給接線員開始問答。操作員？

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員指示）

Ryan Krueger, KBW.

瑞安·克魯格，KBW。

My first question was on Group and thinking more about the shift into smaller local markets and supplemental health products. I know you had cited 100 basis points of margin expansion from that this year, and I think you said you're running ahead of that. Is that something that you expect to continue to cause margin expansion beyond this year? And can you maybe help think about where the margin in the Group business may ultimately get to over time from these changes?

我的第一個問題是關於集團的，我更多地考慮轉向較小的本地市場和補充保健產品。我知道您提到了今年利潤率將擴大 100 個基點，而且我認為您說過您已經領先於此了。您是否預計這會在今年以後繼續導致利潤率擴大？您能否幫忙思考一下，隨著時間的推移，這些變化最終將導致集團業務的利潤率達到多少？

So Ryan, I'm going to start with just and overall around the Group business, and then I'll hand it over to Chris to specifically address the margin.

因此，瑞安，我將首先討論集團業務的整體情況，然後我將交給克里斯專門討論利潤問題。

So first of all, as you heard from our remarks, we are extremely pleased with the execution across our Group business. As you know, and exactly as you asked, we have a targeted segment strategy. And from a segment perspective, the place that we have been the most focused in terms of growing has been in the local market. The local market, first of all, we've been building out all the capabilities there that are required from an overall digital and technological perspective. And we've also been expanding our products because in the local market the expectation is that you will have a bundled set of overall products.

首先，正如您從我們的評論中聽到的，我們對整個集團業務的執行情況感到非常滿意。如您所知，正如您所問，我們有一個有針對性的細分策略。從細分市場的角度來看，我們最關注的成長領域是本地市場。首先，在本地市場，我們一直在從整體數位和技術角度建立所需的所有能力。我們也一直在擴大我們的產品範圍，因為在當地市場，人們期望擁有一套捆綁的整體產品。

And it happens to be the highest margin and fastest-growing part of group as well. In addition to that, we also have been diversifying our products and a place where we have been doing that is in supplemental health. Supplemental health is also higher margin product. And we've been seeing really nice growth in both of those areas. And so we saw that come through again this quarter.

而且它恰好也是集團利潤最高、成長最快的部分。除此之外，我們也一直在使我們的產品多樣化，其中一個領域就是補充健康產品。補充保健品也是利潤較高的產品。我們看到這兩個領域都取得了非常好的成長。因此，我們在本季再次看到了這種情況。

We saw it. If you look at our overall sales, you'll see that the sales increase of 16% year-over-year is fully, for the most part, attributed to growth in local markets, and that growth is also attributed to supplemental health.

我們看到了。如果你看一下我們的整體銷售額，你會發現銷售額年增 16% 在很大程度上完全歸功於當地市場的成長，而這種成長也歸功於補充健康。

And I think the other thing that's worth pointing out is that about two-thirds of the sales that came through in this particular quarter were employee paid, so voluntary benefits and also from existing customers where we are growing lines of coverage.

我認為另一件值得指出的事情是，本季約有三分之二的銷售額來自員工支付的自願福利以及來自現有客戶的福利，我們正在擴大覆蓋範圍。

And Ryan, let's just talk about the margin for a second. You're right. We said that we expected 100 basis points of margin improvement in 2025 from our strategic efforts. I would say though that, that was a broader comment than just growing [supp health] and local markets. I think those are two big examples, but the other is repricing the business.

瑞安，我們來談談利潤率。你說得對。我們表示，透過我們的策略努力，我們預計 2025 年的利潤率將提高 100 個基點。不過我想說的是，這是一個比僅僅成長的[補充健康]和本地市場更廣泛的評論。我認為這是兩個很好的例子，但另一個是重新定價業務。

So specifically to your question, we're probably further along in repricing the business relative to some of the other strategic initiatives, but we see a lot of runway in growing the supplemental health product portfolio and the local market from a segment perspective. I think if you step back, though, to your general question, as Ellen said, it was a great quarter for Group. If you think about the drivers, disability continue to see loss ratio improvement there. That's really being driven by the incidence levels continuing to be favorable. Recoveries are relatively flattish from a metric perspective year-over-year.

因此，具體到您的問題，相對於其他一些策略舉措，我們可能在重新定價業務方面走得更遠，但從細分市場的角度來看，我們看到補充保健產品組合和本地市場在成長方面有很大的發展空間。不過，我認為，如果你退一步思考你的一般性問題，正如艾倫所說，這對集團來說是一個偉大的季度。如果你考慮一下驅動因素，失能損失率就會繼續改善。這實際上是由持續有利的發病率水平所推動的。從指標角度來看，復甦較去年同期相對穩定。

2024 was exceptionally strong for us, as we had mentioned due to a lot of the process and operational improvements that we've made. So the dynamic that is occurring in the industry with lower incidence rates is certainly helping us as well. And frankly, at the moment, we don't see that reverting. It certainly could. We've talked about some of the drivers from a macro perspective.

正如我們所提到的，2024 年對我們來說異常強勁，這歸功於我們在流程和營運方面所做的許多改進。因此，發病率較低的產業所呈現的動態肯定也對我們有幫助。坦白說，目前我們還沒有看到這種趨勢的逆轉。當然可以。我們從宏觀角度討論了一些驅動因素。

But it's -- the positive trend there continues. The second thing that really benefited the quarter was the life loss ratio, which can be volatile quarter-to-quarter. I think the improvement year-over-year was north of 8 points. We wouldn't expect that necessarily to occur. We don't see anything that it's problematic.

但那裡的積極趨勢仍在繼續。本季真正受益的第二個因素是生命損失率，該比率每季都可能波動。我認為與去年同期相比，進步幅度超過了 8 個百分點。我們並不期望這種情況一定會發生。我們沒有發現任何問題。

But when you look at our quarterly results from a loss ratio perspective, specifically for Group Life, you can see that there's volatility.

但是，當您從損失率的角度來看我們的季度業績，特別是團體人壽保險的季度業績時，您會發現存在波動。

And then the third thing really for the quarter is just the fact, as we said, we continue to execute on the strategic initiatives and that flows through in a lot of the different dimensions. So then if you step back and you think about the back half of the year, I would just point you to a few things. First, as I said, we don't really see any sign of deterioration in incidence rates. It could. But at the moment, we continue to see the trends there being positive.

然後，本季的第三件事就是，正如我們所說的，我們將繼續執行策略舉措，並且這會影響到許多不同的方面。因此，如果你回顧一下並思考下半年的情況，我只想指出幾件事。首先，正如我所說，我們確實沒有看到發病率惡化的任何跡象。有可能。但目前，我們仍然看到那裡的趨勢是正面的。

And in Life, in particular, as a reminder, we had a very strong fourth quarter last year. So when you think about your margin, you put all that together for the back half of the year, I think as I mentioned in the prepared remarks, we would expect a similar margin for the second half of '25 to the second half of '24. So then you put that together with the first half. So the first half, we were around 10% plus the back half, somewhere around 8%. We would expect just from the way that, that math works a 9% plus margin for the year, which is 100 basis points of improvement relative to last year.

尤其是在生活領域，值得一提的是，我們去年第四季表現非常強勁。因此，當您考慮利潤率時，將下半年的所有因素放在一起，我想正如我在準備好的評論中提到的那樣，我們預計 25 年下半年的利潤率將與 24 年下半年的利潤率相似。那你就把它和前半部結合起來。因此，前半部約為 10%，後半部約為 8%。從這個計算方式來看，我們預計今年的利潤率將超過 9%，比去年提高 100 個基點。

So to the very beginning part of your question, the outlook that we had given at the beginning of the year where we said we would expect margins to be flat year-over-year given the fact that we had a 100 basis points of macro tailwinds that we didn't know if it would persist. Well, the reality is, is that things continue to be favorable from a macro perspective. But more important, the 100 basis points plus of Lincoln specific, if you will, strategic execution on growing the margin remains. So long answer to your question, but I think it's important because at the end of the day, the macro could change, but the underlying momentum we have, we think will continue.

因此，對於您問題的最開始部分，我們在年初給出的展望是，我們預計利潤率將與去年同期持平，因為我們有 100 個基點的宏觀順風，但我們不知道這種順風是否會持續下去。嗯，事實是，從宏觀角度來看，情況繼續向好。但更重要的是，如果你願意的話，林肯特定的 100 個基點以上的利潤率成長策略執行仍然存在。對你的問題的回答很長，但我認為這很重要，因為最終宏觀可能會發生變化，但我們認為我們擁有的潛在勢頭將會持續下去。

That was really helpful. And then a follow-up was just on the restructuring of the life captives. Can you give any perspective on how meaningful that could be to earnings and free cash flow? And is that something that could be more of a second half of this year event or more likely in '26?

這真的很有幫助。接下來的後續工作就是對終身俘虜進行重組。您能否談談這對收益和自由現金流有多大意義？這件事更有可能在今年下半年發生，或者更有可能在 2026 年發生嗎？

So I don't think we're going to get into the numbers right now, Ryan. We need to go through the work. It's something we've been working on for a while. It's an example of a number of the different ways that we've looked at optimizing the Life portfolio. Once we have something more concrete, we'll give you some ways to think about the return on capital.

所以我認為我們現在不會討論數字，瑞安。我們需要完成這項工作。這是我們一直在努力的事情。這是我們研究的優化人壽投資組合的多種不同方法的一個例子。一旦我們有了更具體的東西，我們就會給你一些思考資本回報的方法。

But as we talked about with the deployable excess capital, everything we're doing is geared towards maximizing the return we're going to get on that relative to the opportunities that we have in front of us. As it relates to timing, it's hard to say, but the actual execution of something like that is one dynamic, but then the impact on earnings and free cash flow at a minimum would be next year, not this year.

但正如我們談到可部署的過剩資本時所說，我們所做的一切都是為了最大限度地提高我們相對於我們面前的機會所獲得的回報。至於時間安排，很難說，但這樣的事情的實際執行是一個動態，但對收益和自由現金流的影響至少會在明年，而不是今年。

Suneet Kamath, Jefferies.

蘇尼特‧卡馬斯（Suneet Kamath），傑富瑞集團。

I wanted to start with the RILA product. It looked like your sales were quite strong, I think, plus 32%. And I think the industry was maybe plus 20%, so you're gaining share. There was another company that sort of talked about some increased competition in RILA. So I just wanted to get a sense of what you're seeing in the market?

我想從 RILA 產品開始。我認為，看起來你們的銷售業績相當強勁，成長了 32%。我認為該行業的成長率可能為 20%，所以你的份額正在增加。還有另一家公司談到了 RILA 中競爭的加劇。所以我只是想了解一下您在市場上看到了什麼？

And then relatedly, it looked like the flows may have been down a decent amount year-over-year. So can you just talk about that? And again, the flows I'm specifically talking about is RILA.

與此相關的是，流量似乎比去年同期下降了不少。那你能談談這個嗎？再次強調，我特別談論的流程是 RILA。

Great. So thanks. So yes, we saw year-over-year as it relates to RILA, we saw about a 32% increase in overall sales. Having said that, if you recall, we introduced our second-generation RILA product in the third quarter of last year. And that was when we started to really see our sales accelerate.

偉大的。所以謝謝。是的，我們看到 RILA 的整體銷售額年增了約 32%。話雖如此，如果您還記得的話，我們在去年第三季推出了第二代 RILA 產品。從那時起，我們就開始真正看到我們的銷售加速成長。

So you saw in the third quarter about $1.2 billion. And then relative sequentially, if you just look at where we were first quarter compared to where we are in second quarter, we're up about 12% sequentially as the industry continues to grow.

所以你看到第三季約 12 億美元。然後相對連續地，如果你只看第一季與第二季的比較，隨著產業的持續成長，我們環比成長了約 12％。

Importantly for us, and we've continued to highlight the fact that we are focused on profitable growth as opposed to top line sales growth. So it's really critical to us that as we're thinking about overall product sales, that we are also thinking about capital efficiency. We're thinking about ensuring that we are maintaining our profitability targets, et cetera. The second-generation RILA product has some unique features associated with it, crediting rate strategies, indices, et cetera, that are extremely popular and they are resonating, and that's part of what is supporting us.

對我們來說重要的是，我們一直強調我們專注於獲利成長而不是營收成長。因此，當我們考慮整體產品銷售時，考慮資本效率對我們來說至關重要。我們正在考慮確保維持獲利目標等等。第二代 RILA 產品具有一些獨特的功能，包括信用利率策略、指數等，這些功能非常受歡迎並且引起了共鳴，這也是支持我們的部分原因。

And then additionally, and I also mentioned this in remarks, we're expanding some of our distribution segments as well. So we're seeing some new segments that are also seeing the RILA product attractive and we're on those shelves, and we're seeing some success there. So more to come as we continue to grow out the RILA product. As we mentioned, it's an important part of our overall spread-based business strategy as is continuing to grow the overall fixed segment as well. And I'll hand it over to Chris for the second part of the question.

此外，我在評論中也提到過，我們也在擴大一些分銷領域。因此，我們看到一些新的細分市場也對 RILA 產品很有吸引力，我們的產品也出現在這些市場的貨架上，並且取得了一些成功。隨著我們繼續發展 RILA 產品，將會有更多產品推出。正如我們所提到的，它是我們整體基於利差的業務策略的重要組成部分，同時也持續成長整體固定業務。我將把問題的第二部分交給克里斯。

Right. So Suneet, I think the flows question is relatively straightforward. This is a block that is still relatively new, right? If you think about when we in the industry really started growing RILA for us who is probably about five or six years ago, maybe 7. But if you just think about the natural trajectory as those products come out of surrender period, you will see more outflows.

正確的。所以 Suneet，我認為流量問題相對簡單。這是一個還比較新的街區，對嗎？如果您想想我們這個產業真正開始發展 RILA 的時間，那大概是五、六年前，也許是七年前。但如果你只考慮這些產品退出期後的自然軌跡，你會看到更多的資金流出。

The goal is to retain those policyholders into new RILA products. But at the end of the day, as that block ages, you would expect to see, and you're seeing it with some of our peers as well, the outflows increase, but the goal obviously is then to have sales increase more than that to continue to grow the block.

目標是讓這些保單持有人繼續購買新的 RILA 產品。但最終，隨著區塊的老化，你會看到，而且你也會在我們的一些同行身上看到，流出量會增加，但我們的目標顯然是讓銷售額增加更多，以繼續擴大區塊。

Okay. That makes sense. And then I guess my second question, I guess, for Chris. Just wondering how you're feeling about that 45% to 60% free cash flow conversion guide that you gave us for '26. And I just want to understand, like it seems to me that, that guidance was given pre-Bain.

好的。這很有道理。然後我想我的第二個問題是針對克里斯的。只是想知道您對我們給出的 26 年 45% 至 60% 的自由現金流轉換指南有何感想。我只是想了解，在我看來，該指導是在貝恩之前給出的。

And so if one of the objectives here of the Bain Capital is to improve risk-adjusted returns and free cash flow conversion, it would seem that with the Bain Capital, you should be perhaps above the target that you gave pre-Bain, but I just wanted to make sure I'm thinking about it right.

因此，如果貝恩資本的目標之一是提高風險調整後的回報和自由現金流轉換，那麼有了貝恩資本，你或許應該能夠實現高於貝恩之前設定的目標，但我只是想確保我的想法是正確的。

So I would say we're feeling good about the outlook that we provided, although obviously, we give more of a concrete view at the end of the year, Suneet, as you know. I think the point on Bain is a nuanced one because as we just talked about, we're going to deploy that capital over the next 18 months. So we're not anchoring to a 2026 number as it relates to the returns that we'll get on that capital.

所以我想說，我們對所提供的前景感到滿意，儘管顯然，我們在年底給出了更具體的觀點，Suneet，正如你所知。我認為貝恩的觀點很微妙，因為正如我們剛才談到的，我們將在未來 18 個月內部署這筆資金。因此，我們不會將 2026 年的數字作為基準，因為這與我們從該資本中獲得的回報有關。

But I agree, longer term, if you think about both Lincoln is a product mix, the industry, the businesses that we're growing and now the ability to deploy Bain into maximizing some of the areas that can be maximized, of course, the longer-term free cash flow conversion should be north of where it is. And even if you go back two years to the outlook that we gave, we talked about the 2026 guide and then we also gave some thoughts on what the longer term would look like. So yes, at the end of the day, I would say, because we're going to deploy the Bain Capital, capital over the next 18 months. I wouldn't change your thinking as it relates to the trajectory that we're on relative to what we talked about before. But absolutely, longer term, as we grow Group, as we're more efficient with Bermuda, as we're more efficient from an operating model, all of those things.

但我同意，從長遠來看，如果你考慮林肯的產品組合、行業、我們正在發展的業務，以及現在將貝恩部署到最大化一些可以最大化的領域的能力，當然，長期自由現金流轉換應該比現在高。即使回顧兩年前我們給出的展望，我們也討論了 2026 年的指南，然後我們也對長期前景給出了一些想法。所以，是的，最終我想說，因為我們將在未來 18 個月內部署貝恩資本。我不會改變你的想法，因為它與我們之前討論的軌跡有關。但絕對地，從長遠來看，隨著我們集團的發展，隨著我們在百慕達的效率提高，隨著我們的營運模式更加高效，所有這些事情都會發生。

And frankly, dealing with the legacy life block, all of those things would suggest a higher free cash flow conversion rate, but over time.

坦白說，處理遺留的生活障礙，所有這些事情都會意味著更高的自由現金流轉換率，但隨著時間的推移。

Alex Scott, Barclays.

巴克萊銀行的亞歷克斯·斯科特。

I wanted to see if you could give us a little more color on some of the things you're doing on distribution and group in particular. I mean it sounds like you're pretty optimistic on the growth profile of that business. And just interested in what will be the drivers of that growth? Is it the capabilities and the platform? Is it the distribution and some of the things you're doing there?

我想看看您是否可以向我們詳細介紹您在分銷和集團方面所做的一些事情。我的意思是，聽起來您對該業務的成長前景非常樂觀。而您感興趣的是，這種成長的驅動力是什麼？是能力和平台嗎？這是分佈和您在那裡做的一些事情嗎？

I just want to get a better feel for how you're going to grow.

我只是想更了解你將如何成長。

Absolutely. Alex. As it relates to group and how we're thinking about distribution or really how we're thinking about competitive differentiation, it's all of the above. So starting with the fact that a targeted segment strategy enables our team to really be focused at the segment level, starting with distribution where we have dedicated teams that are focused on the local, the regional and the national market and really strengthening relationships from that level. We very much have been focused on what we think of as strategic broker relationships, which are really critical.

絕對地。亞歷克斯。因為它與群體有關，以及我們如何考慮分銷，或者我們如何考慮競爭差異化，所以它就是以上所有。因此，首先要有一個有針對性的細分市場策略，它使我們的團隊能夠真正專注於細分市場層面，從分銷開始，我們擁有專注於本地、區域和國家市場的專門團隊，並真正加強了從該層面的關係。我們一直非常注重我們所認為的策略經紀人關係，這確實至關重要。

And again, dedicating people at the different market segments to be able to build and enhance those overall relationships. But while we're doing that, we also very much have been investing in really building the capabilities, the digital capabilities, the technology capabilities. And I would say that they're really across a couple of different areas.

再次強調，我們致力於在不同的細分市場中建立和加強這些整體關係。但在我們這樣做的同時，我們也一直在大力投資建立真正的能力、數位能力和技術能力。我想說的是，他們確實跨越了幾個不同的領域。

First is, for example, thinking about InsurTech. And so thinking about our ability to connect into the benefits, administrative systems and to be able to provide more ease of use and more access. That's important across all segments. It's even more important in the local market where they just tend to be smaller businesses. And so that's really critical.

例如，先考慮 InsurTech。因此，請考慮我們連接到福利和管理系統的能力，以及能夠提供更易於使用和更多存取的能力。這對所有領域都很重要。在本地市場中這一點更為重要，因為本地市場的企業規模往往較小。所以這真的很關鍵。

Having more digital tools. Those digital tools are, they're for the brokers, they're for the employers and they're for the employees, and we've done a lot there.

擁有更多數位工具。這些數位工具是為經紀人、雇主和員工提供的，我們在這方面做了很多工作。

We've invested quite a bit in lead management, and that's been an important part, particularly upmarket of what differentiates us there as employers and employees are trying to navigate between paid family leave, short-term disability, long-term disability, supplemental health, how all of that integrates. And so that's been an important part of the overall capability as well.

我們在領導管理方面投入了相當多的資金，這是一個重要部分，特別是在高端市場，這是我們與眾不同之處，因為雇主和僱員正在努力在帶薪探親假、短期殘疾、長期殘疾、補充健康以及所有這些的整合之間找到平衡。這也是整體能力的重要組成部分。

I'm not sure if your question also extends over into our LFD, but let me just spend a minute on there. So as you know, we are really known for our distribution leadership. And so it gives us the ability to lean in as we continue to build out our products and also our capabilities both on the retail life side and also on the retail annuity side. So on the annuity side, for example, where we're really leaning into having consistent presence, for example, in the fixed annuity markets, some of what we're doing there is really deepening our partnerships. We are working directly with some of our distribution partners to have unique features that are specifically for their shelves that also will support our capabilities going forward.

我不確定您的問題是否也涉及我們的 LFD，但請允許我花一點時間來討論。如您所知，我們因分銷領導力而聞名。因此，它使我們能夠繼續完善我們的產品以及我們在零售人壽和零售年金方面的能力。因此，以年金方面為例，我們確實傾向於在固定年金市場等保持持續存在，我們在那裡所做的一些事情確實加深了我們的合作關係。我們正在與一些分銷合作夥伴直接合作，以提供專門針對其貨架的獨特功能，這也將支持我們未來的能力。

And same thing on the life side, and I addressed that in our remarks as well, really working much more closely with the financial professional, providing them with digital tools, which has been critical, automated sales processes for new business, both on the life and annuity side. So all of the ease of use of working with us and providing tools and support are supporting us to be able to continue to grow the business.

在人壽保險方面也是一樣，我在我們的發言中也提到了這一點，真正與金融專業人士進行更緊密的合作，為他們提供數位工具，這對於人壽和年金方面的新業務來說至關重要，自動化的銷售流程。因此，與我們合作以及提供工具和支援的所有便利都支持我們能夠繼續發展業務。

That's really helpful. The second question I had is just on the external reinsurance solution potential. And you mentioned that as one of the things you may use capital for. Could you just talk about the environment there and just appetite from the reinsurers and what you could potentially try to do? Like are we talking more of a shedding risk type transaction or something that could actually provide you some kind of capital associated with blocks that do have significant value?

這真的很有幫助。我的第二個問題是關於外部再保險解決方案的潛力。您提到這是您可以使用資本來做的事情之一。您能否談談那裡的環境和再保險公司的興趣以及您可能嘗試做的事情？例如，我們談論的更多的是擺脫風險類型的交易，還是實際上可以為您提供與具有重大價值的區塊相關的某種資本的東西？

Like how should we think about potential external?

例如我們該如何看待潛在的外在因素？

Yes. Alex, I guess I would say a couple of things. One, it's too early for us to really talk about anything we're focused on there with real detail. We're studying all of the possibilities. I think at the end of the day, though, we're focused as it relates to external reinsurance on the legacy life block.

是的。亞歷克斯，我想我會說幾件事。首先，現在就詳細討論我們所關注的任何事情還為時過早。我們正在研究所有可能性。不過，我認為最終我們的重點是與遺留壽險板塊的外部再保險有關。

And so we obviously did a very large deal, a very complicated deal two years ago. It's been a good deal for Lincoln, if you think about the growth and improvement in some of the free cash flow and the derisking that we were able to do there. So I think as we've talked about the focus as it relates to the potential to do another reinsurance deal would really be focused on that. I think how we do it is something that we're looking at today. But obviously, if you have deployable excess capital, it would lessen the need to include -- you wouldn't necessarily structure it the way that the previous deal for us was structured, right?

因此，我們顯然在兩年前做了一筆非常大、非常複雜的交易。如果你考慮到自由現金流的成長和改善以及我們能夠實現的風險降低，這對林肯來說是一筆好交易。因此，我認為，正如我們所討論的，重點在於與進行另一項再保險交易的可能性相關的重點。我認為我們今天要考慮的是如何做到這一點。但顯然，如果你有可部署的過剩資本，那麼就會減少包含的需要——你不一定會按照我們之前的交易結構來建構它，對嗎？

You have a lot more options. And then at the end of the day, to your question about the environment, the environment is robust. It seems like every other week, there's a new large complicated insurance transaction that's out there. So we've done a lot of transactions over the past five years. We know all of the interested parties and to the degree that we decide there is something to do there.

您還有更多選擇。最後，對於您關於環境的問題，環境是健全的。似乎每隔一周就會出現一項新的大型複雜保險交易。因此，我們在過去五年裡完成了許多交易。我們了解所有相關方，並決定在相關方面採取相應行動。

We'll talk to you all about it, but it's just one of the things that we're studying today.

我們會和大家討論這個問題，但這只是我們今天研究的內容之一。

Wes Carmichael, Autonomous Research.

韋斯·卡邁克爾，自主研究。

I had a question, maybe a follow-up to Ryan's on the Group. But in terms of GAAP profitability, I think remeasurement gains in the period were $104 million. And I know you had a significant benefit last year. But is there any help on how to think about what produced that gain this quarter? And as you headed into the assumption review, if you think there's going to be any run rate impact from potential unlocking?

我有一個問題，也許是對 Ryan 在小組中提出的問題的後續回答。但就 GAAP 獲利能力而言，我認為該期間的重估收益為 1.04 億美元。我知道你去年獲得了很大的利益。但是，對於如何思考本季取得如此成長的原因，有什麼幫助嗎？當您進入假設審查時，您是否認為潛在的解鎖會對運行率產生影響？

So Wes, it's a good question. Let's just talk about what the line item is because I saw your note. I think it's very straightforward, right? If you think about the results that we are delivering and the favorability that's happening specifically in disability, you would expect that favorability to then flow through into that policyholder remeasurement line, right? Because ultimately, what it is, is you set reserves at the beginning of the year and included in those reserves that's going to be the active claim -- or the claims which have been reported and you have assumptions around that.

所以韋斯，這是個好問題。因為我看到了你的筆記，所以我們就來談談專案是什麼吧。我認為這很簡單，對嗎？如果您考慮我們正在提供的結果以及特別是在殘疾方面出現的有利因素，您會期望這種有利因素會流入保單持有人重新測量線，對嗎？因為歸根結底，你在年初設定了儲備，並將主動索賠或已報告的索賠納入這些儲備中，並且你對此有所假設。

And then there's also an assumption for claims that have been incurred but not reported yet. And so when you have the reserve for that portion, you are making assumptions for how things are going to progress throughout the year, what the incidence rates will be, what the recovery rates will be, et cetera. And so if you think about the fact that what we've been saying is that our recent results are tracking better than what the long-term averages would look like.

此外，還存在對已經發生但尚未報告的索賠的假設。因此，當您擁有該部分的儲備時，您將對全年情況將如何發展、發病率是多少、康復率是多少等等做出假設。因此，如果您考慮我們一直在說的事實，那就是我們最近的結果比長期平均值更好。

Mechanically, you would expect to see this come through assuming that the favorability continues. So it is very much a by-product of the way the reserves work. It's to be expected. In second quarter, as we've talked about, big picture, we have favorable seasonality in disability, and so that's why you see both on the loss ratio. And then as a result, within the remeasurement line be a little bit bigger.

從機械角度來看，假設這種有利因素持續存在，你會期望看到這種情況發生。因此，這很大程度上是儲備運作方式的副產品。這是意料之中的事。在第二季度，正如我們所討論的，從總體來看，我們在殘疾方面有有利的季節性，這就是為什麼你會在損失率上看到這兩種情況。因此，重新測量的線內會稍微大一點。

You saw it last year as well. And so I wouldn't -- I would just think of it as the favorability in trends go relative to what we've talked about as the longer-term assumptions, you would expect to see that line item produce these types of results.

去年你也看到了。所以我不會——我只是認為趨勢的有利性與我們所討論的長期假設有關，你會期望看到該項目產生這些類型的結果。

That's helpful, Chris. I guess just switching to RPS. You mentioned that a strong pipeline in the second half of the year. And just a little bit more color there, if you could. And I know there's a planned termination in the first quarter, but any help on how you're thinking about run rate earnings in that segment would be great?

這很有幫助，克里斯。我猜只是切換到 RPS。您提到下半年的管道建設十分強勁。如果可以的話，請再添加一點顏色。我知道第一季度有計劃終止合同，但是如果您能就您認為該部門的運行率收益提供任何幫助，那會很好嗎？

Sure. So first of all, we -- while we, first of all, messaged that our first year sales, we saw some really healthy sales in this particular quarter. They were up about 50% year-over-year. And importantly, because we've been talking to you about pressures around stable value outflows, a meaningful portion of those sales were in stable value.

當然。首先，我們—首先，我們發布了第一年的銷售額，我們在這個特定季度看到了一些非常健康的銷售額。與去年同期相比，成長了約 50%。重要的是，由於我們一直在與您討論穩定價值流出的壓力，因此這些銷售額中很大一部分都是穩定價值的。

And one of the drivers of that is a new product that we believe can support us as we continue to go forward. As we -- we often have a lot of insight into future pipeline as well. And so as we look at the go-forward sales that we expect in the back half of the year, we can see that they actually are quite healthy. So we feel good about the momentum. We've seen some really nice first year of sales momentum and also recurring deposits as well.

其中一個驅動因素是我們相信新產品能夠支持我們繼續前進。正如我們——我們通常也對未來的管道有很多見解。因此，當我們回顧下半年的預期銷售額時，我們可以看到，銷售額實際上相當健康。因此我們對這一發展勢頭感到滿意。我們看到了第一年非常好的銷售動能和定期存款。

So total deposits have been healthy. And at the same time, we also acknowledged some pressure as it relates to earnings that has been mostly driven by stable value outflows, and we have a number of actions in place to continue to improve that.

因此總存款一直保持健康水準。同時，我們也承認，獲利方面存在一些壓力，這主要受到穩定價值流出的影響，我們已經採取了一系列措施來繼續改善這種狀況。

Yes. And I would just add, I think that's well said. At the end of the day, the dynamics that we've been experiencing in RPS have been good underlying growth, but offset by stable value outflows. We actually saw moderation there this quarter. And so to the degree that stable value moves around, that's going to have an outsized impact, just given the ROA on that business.

是的。我只想補充一點，我認為這說得很好。最終，我們在 RPS 中經歷的動態是良好的潛在成長，但卻被穩定的價值流出所抵消。本季度我們實際上看到了緩和的跡象。因此，就穩定價值變動的程度而言，這將產生巨大的影響，僅考慮該業務的 ROA。

But underneath the surface, we continue to grow the important parts of the business, we continue to have expense discipline. We do think that there's more we can do there. And sequentially, earnings were up for RPS, which I think is a good sign relative to the past couple of quarters. But at the end of the day, this is still a business where we have to execute on our strategic priorities. It is still somewhat dependent on markets.

但在表面之下，我們繼續發展業務的重要部分，我們繼續嚴格控制費用。我們確實認為我們還可以做更多的事情。而 RPS 的收益連續上升，我認為這相對於過去幾季來說是一個好兆頭。但歸根結底，這仍然是一項我們必須執行策略重點的業務。它仍然在一定程度上依賴市場。

And to the degree that stable value flows turned from negative to positive, that will provide a tailwind over time.

當穩定的價值流從負值轉為正值時，隨著時間的推移，這將帶來順風。

That's all the time we had for questions today. If you did queue up to ask a question and your question hasn't been answered, Lincoln Financial will reach out after the conclusion of today's call. And I would like to turn the call back over to Tina Madon for closing remarks.

今天我們的提問時間就到這裡了。如果您確實排隊提問但尚未得到解答，林肯金融將在今天的電話會議結束後與您聯繫。我想將電話轉回給蒂娜·馬登 (Tina Madon) 做最後發言。

So thank you for joining us this morning. And as the operator said, we're happy to address any follow-up questions you may have. And please e-mail us at investorrelations@lfg.com.

非常感謝您今天早上加入我們。正如接線員所說，我們很樂意解答您可能有的任何後續問題。請發送電子郵件至 investorrelations@lfg.com。

Ladies and gentlemen, this does conclude today's conference call. Thank you for your participation, and you may now disconnect.

女士們、先生們，今天的電話會議到此結束。感謝您的參與，您現在可以斷開連接。