Agent Informer - National Association of Professional Allstate Agents ...

The National Association of Professional Allstate Agents, Inc. is a nonprofit professional trade
association for Allstate agents. NAPAA provides its members with reliable communications on issues
that affect agency owners and their customers every week. NAPAA further serves its members by
acting on their behalf and speaking with a distinct and unfettered voice on a wide range of
issues. Our operations, including our publications, Website and office expenses are funded by
member agents who pay membership dues.
NAPAA is dedicated to advancing the interests of Allstate agency owners and their customers by
promoting professionalism and ethical practices. By becoming a member of NAPAA, you are joining a
special group of Allstate agents.
As a rule, NAPAA members are the first to find out about breaking news about the company and the
industry. As an example, NAPAA broke the news about what happened to agents in Canada last year
– no one else was covering the story. We continue to follow this story and our members hear the
latest updates first. The Canadian Experiment story is just one of several that the company would
prefer you didn’t know about.
Staying informed so that you are better able to make educated decisions about your business and
your career is just one of the many benefits of NAPAA. Unity and strength are essential for a strong
agent association. By joining NAPAA today you can help us grow even stronger. Please support
NAPAA with your membership today.
Click here to join online: Join NAPAA or Make a 2 minute call now – 877-627-2248 – We’ll complete your
membership application for you!
NAPAA is a professional trade association, membership dues are $350 per year, or $29 per month by EFT,
and are tax deductible as an ordinary business expense.
Analysts lower full-year estimates on Allstate
Analysts lower Allstate estimates, concerned by life insurance segment, investment portfolio
July 24, 2008, Associated Press
NEW YORK (Associated Press) - Following a 98 percent drop in Allstate Corp.'s second-quarter profit, analysts
expressed concern over the future of the insurer's life insurance segment and the inherent risk in its investment
portfolio.
Late Tuesday, the Northbrook, Ill.-based company reported net income below Wall Street's estimates, due to a
record level of second-quarter catastrophe losses. The company also said its net investment income declined 14
percent, due to exposure to certain real estate and financial services-related assets, while operating income from its
life insurance segment, Allstate Financial, also declined.
Lehman Brothers analyst Jay Gelb subsequently lowered his full-year profit estimate to $5.40 per share from $5.45
per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial, on average, forecast earnings of $5.50 per share for the year.
Gelb cut his estimate due to management's outlook for Allstate Financial. The company expects this business to
generate quarterly operating income in the range of 65 percent to 75 percent of recent periods, which Gelb
estimates as being in the $100 million range going forward. Management could seek strategic alternatives for this
segment, said Gelb, who has an "Equal Weight" rating and a $49 target price on the stock.
On the other hand, Wachovia Securities analyst Susan Spivak Bernstein, is concerned by the company's investment
portfolio.
"While Allstate is proactively seeking to mitigate its investment risk, we can't foresee a situation where there will not
be additional writedowns," she wrote in a note to clients.
Bernstein's "Market Perform" rating on the stock reflects uncertainty surrounding the investment portfolio, as well as
the company's high catastrophe exposure.
Lower forecasted investment yields also led Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co. analyst Bijan Moazami to lower 2008
estimates on the company, to $5.55 per share from $5.70 per share.
Shares dipped 83 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $45.34 Thursday. Shares have traded between $42.51 and $59.23 in the
past 12 months.