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For Edit

Stop expecting life to go back to normal next year

Americans will need to take pandemic precautions well into 2021 — yes, even after a vaccine arrives.

— NYT: Aaron E. Carroll

Categories
Business

AM Best: Canada Property/Casualty Insurers well-positioned; life writers face volatility in 2020 (AM BestTV)

OLDWICK, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–In this episode of AMBestTV, Brian Lynch and Anthony McSwieney, senior financial analysts, AM Best, said 2020 has brought fewer property/casualty (P/C) claims, but has increased investment uncertainty in the Canada market. Click on http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=ambcanada920 to view the entire program.

Lynch said Canada’s P/C industry remains on solid footing despite the pandemic.

“AM Best believes P/C insurers in Canada are well-positioned through 2020, as shown by their solid capitalization and risk mitigation practices,” said Lynch. “However, COVID-19 and the new normal are changing the lives of insureds. It is creating a slew of new benefits, as well as new challenges for insurance companies. Some of those new benefits relate to the remote work, whether it is the decline of ridership or the hyper-vigilance that comes with being home. Additionally, the new challenges include: how will these remote workers be covered in the future? Or what kind of cyber exposure has been exposed because of the rush to work from home?”

AM Best revised its outlook on Canada’s life/annuity industry in April 2020. McSwieney highlighted the rationale behind the change.

“The disruption in the financial markets due to COVID-19 triggered AM Best revising its outlook to negative from stable in April, and unfortunately, the fundamentals essentially has not changed. There are more known variables now than when AM Best revised its outlook, as things related to the volatility in the equity markets have caused some permanent losses for insurers. Now, that does not move the needle from a ratings perspective, but it does create volatility on the earnings side and the balance sheet side.”

To access the related market segment report, titled, “COVID-19 Taking Its Toll on Canada’s Economy and Insurance Industry,” please visit http://www3.ambest.com/bestweek/purchase.asp?record_code=300880.

Recent AMBestTV coverage includes:

  • Hardening Market Driving Bermuda Captive Growth: Captive insurers old and new are writing more business during the hardening market, according to a panel focused on the Bermuda landscape: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=ambcaptives920.
  • Hard Market Driving Interest in Captives: The pandemic, economic downturn and higher insurance rates have increased interest in captive insurers, said panelists in a recent AM Best webinar: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=ambcaptiverecut920.
  • New Data Sources, AI Changing Commercial Underwriting: The “explosion of digital economy” and use of artificial intelligence is improving underwriting, according to the “Using New Data to Out-Select the Competition,” panel: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=carpedata920.
  • AM Best: Top Five Global Reinsurers Demonstrate Strong Relationships: Swiss Re and Munich Re remain the two largest global reinsurers, while other companies may have struggled, said Dan Hofmeister, financial analyst, AM Best: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=globalretop50920.

AM BestTV covers exclusive AM Best and insurance industry information and reports, targeted topics and key developments in the insurance, reinsurance and related sectors daily. Sign up for alerts of episodes at www.ambest.com/multimedia/ambtvsignup.html. View AM BestTV episodes at www.ambest.tv.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in New York, London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright © 2020 by A.M. Best Company, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Contacts

Lee McDonald
Group Vice President, Publication and News Services
+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5561
lee.mcdonald@ambest.com

Categories
Healthcare

World-Champion Gymnast Aly Raisman partners with Sanvello to advance mental health solutions

Leading behavioral care provider also introduces nationwide availability of new mental health coaching services and expands therapy offering to 10 states

MINNETONKA, Minn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Sanvello Health, Inc., a leading digital mental health care provider and a UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) company, today announced a new partnership with gold medal gymnast and wellness advocate, Aly Raisman. The news strategic partnership also comes as Sanvello launches its new mental health coaching services and an expanded therapy offering, both available within the app.


An active user of Sanvello, Raisman will help reach millions of people worldwide who can benefit from taking action to improve their mental health. She’ll also work closely with the Sanvello team to build out new services and offerings for global app users, informed by her own personal experience.

“Working with a professional therapist and building in self-care practices to my everyday routine have really helped me through some very tough times,” says Raisman. “I want to help others create space to focus on their own mental health, and Sanvello is a great place to start. There’s no one-size-fits-all for mental health, but with so many types of support within Sanvello, you can choose the path that feels right to you. Together, we want to encourage help-seeking behavior and improve the mental health care experience so more people around the world can take small steps to feel better.”

The partnership, and launch of in-app coaching and therapy services comes at a critical time: The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic has more people than ever in need of quality mental health care. More than one-third of American adults are experiencing symptoms of an anxiety disorder, and one-quarter are experiencing symptoms of a depressive disorder, according to CDC survey data — up more than 250% from a year ago.

“We’re seeing thousands of people come to Sanvello every day seeking help for stress, anxiety and depression. People are overwhelmed, and they’re choosing Sanvello as their first stop to find better mental health,” says Brian Sauer, chief executive officer of Sanvello. “With a new academic year upon us adding new stressors, we’re expecting the need to only increase. Over three-quarters of our users with stress, anxiety and depression report feeling better within just 60 days. We are eager to partner with Aly to continue to bring the best digital mental health support we can to people around the world.”

The additional services rounds out the company’s care service offering, making Sanvello Health the nation’s first and only digital behavioral health care provider with a completely seamless and integrated patient experience, combining the power of content and care to serve a broad population across multiple diagnoses such as anxiety, depression and trauma-related conditions.

The full Sanvello patient experience now includes:

  • Therapy services available in 10 states: California, Colorado, Florida, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Texas, and Washington. More states will be added by year-end, with these services serving 80% of the U.S. population.
    • Three-quarters of Sanvello Therapy users saw 50% improvement — clinically significant improvement — within 60 days.
  • Highly trained coaches providing personalized support to help people identify their goals, break down barriers, apply cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) concepts to everyday life, and remain engaged and motivated through their mental health journeys.
    • Sixty percent of Sanvello Coaching users report feeling better within 60 days and are twice as likely to have clinically significant improvement in their assessment scores — their increased engagement results in superior outcomes.
  • An ever-expanding library of self-care resources including meditation, coping tools and CBT-based Guided Journey experiences that help people stay engaged, build healthy habits and feel better through more frequent interactions.
    • Sixty percent of Sanvello Guided Journey users report feeling better within 60 days.

Used by over 3.5 million people worldwide, Sanvello holds the No. 1 search position for stress and anxiety in the app stores and has a consumer approval rating of 4.8/5 stars. Sanvello is also covered by the health plans of 37 million Americans through partnerships with major insurance payers.

Consumers interested in learning more can try a free 14-day trial of Sanvello Premium + Coaching by downloading Sanvello from their app store.

About Sanvello Health, Inc.

Sanvello Health, Inc. is a leading digital mental health care provider and the company’s digital platform holds the #1 search position for stress and anxiety in app stores. Through partnerships with major insurance payers, employers, and higher education institutions, Sanvello offers covered management and treatment of stress, anxiety, and depression for over 37 million people. By innovating the mental health care experience and bringing together patients, providers, and payers, the Sanvello platform helps millions of people around the world find relief when they need it and feel happier over time. Download Sanvello from the App Store or Google Play. For more information, visit sanvello.com or follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.

About UnitedHealth Group

UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) is a diversified health care company dedicated to helping people live healthier lives and helping make the health system work better for everyone. UnitedHealth Group offers a broad spectrum of products and services through two distinct platforms: UnitedHealthcare, which provides health care coverage and benefits services; and Optum, which provides information and technology-enabled health services. For more information, visit UnitedHealth Group at www.unitedhealthgroup.com or follow @UnitedHealthGrp on Twitter.

Contacts

Caroline Landree

651-308-2481

caroline.landree@uhg.com

Categories
Sports & Gaming

Skechers Elite Runner Edward Cheserek wins 10K and sets new PB during Sunset Tour in Los Angeles

MANHATTAN BEACH, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Skechers celebrates 17-time NCAA national champion Edward Cheserek winning the 10K race during the Sunset Tour on Saturday in Los Angeles—his first pro career attempt on the track at this distance. Cheserek, who ran in custom-made prototype Skechers GO RUN track spikes, crossed the finish line first in 27:42, which was 48 seconds faster than his previous best time at this distance set at the 2014 NCAA Championship. This follows his recent victory at the 5K distance with a meet-record time of 13:21 on August 22.


“It feels great to be racing again after the extended time off during the pandemic, so to find my groove with the 5K win last week and then win my first career pro 10K attempt on the track is even better,” said Edward Cheserek. “I’m thankful for the partnership with Skechers. I asked them for an even lighter race day shoe and they delivered—leading to a new personal best today at this distance six years after the collegiate championships in 2014.”

“Edward continues to be a dominating force in running, and we’re lucky to have him on our team racing in Skechers GO RUN footwear,” said Michael Greenberg, president of Skechers. “The combination of his power, strength and dedication plus our footwear has given Edward the competitive edge he needs to succeed. We’re proud to be part of his journey as the sport gets back in gear building up to Tokyo next summer.”

Originally from Kenya, Cheserek attended Saint Benedict’s Preparatory School in New Jersey, where he was named the Gatorade 2013 National Cross Country Runner of the Year, before choosing to continue his collegiate career at distance running powerhouse, University of Oregon. In 2013, Cheserek became the first freshman in school history to win the NCAA National Cross Country Championships, and would then go on to repeat as cross country champion in his sophomore and junior years. By the end of his collegiate career, Cheserek was the winningest male athlete in NCAA Division I athletics’ history with a combined 17 national championships in cross country plus indoor and outdoor track and field. After going pro in September 2017, he set a new PR in the indoor mile with a win at the 2018 Boston University Valentine Invitational. Wearing custom Skechers GO RUN racing spikes, his time of 3:49.44 placed him at #2 all-time on the world record list for that distance. In April 2019, Cheserek won the Carlsbad 5000 in 13:29, tying the IAAF road world record and achieving a new road 5K personal best.

Since its debut with the first model of Skechers GO RUN worn by Meb Keflezighi in 2012, Skechers Performance footwear has earned respect throughout the running world and won numerous awards within the footwear industry—including 10 editorial awards in 2019 alone.

The entire Skechers GO RUN collection for men and women is available at Skechers retail stores and skechers.com as well as select retail partners.

About Skechers USA, Inc.

Based in Manhattan Beach, California, Skechers (NYSE: SKX) designs, develops and markets a diverse range of lifestyle and performance footwear, apparel and accessories for men, women and children. The Company’s collections are available in the United States and over 170 countries and territories via department and specialty stores, and direct to consumers through 3,615 Company- and third-party-owned retail stores and e-commerce websites. The Company manages its international business through a network of global distributors, joint venture partners in Asia, Israel and Mexico, and wholly-owned subsidiaries in Canada, Japan, India, Europe and Latin America. For more information, please visit about.skechers.com and follow us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok.

This announcement contains forward-looking statements that are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. These forward-looking statements may include, without limitation, Skechers’ future domestic and international growth, financial results and operations including expected net sales and earnings, its development of new products, future demand for its products, its planned domestic and international expansion, opening of new stores and additional expenditures, and advertising and marketing initiatives. Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking language such as “believe,” “anticipate,” “expect,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will result,” “could,” “may,” “might,” or any variations of such words with similar meanings. Any such statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause or contribute to such differences include the disruption of business and operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic; international economic, political and market conditions including the challenging consumer retail markets in the United States; sustaining, managing and forecasting costs and proper inventory levels; losing any significant customers; decreased demand by industry retailers and cancellation of order commitments due to the lack of popularity of particular designs and/or categories of products; maintaining brand image and intense competition among sellers of footwear for consumers, especially in the highly competitive performance footwear market; anticipating, identifying, interpreting or forecasting changes in fashion trends, consumer demand for the products and the various market factors described above; sales levels during the spring, back-to-school and holiday selling seasons; and other factors referenced or incorporated by reference in Skechers’ annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 and its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended June 30, 2020. More specifically, the COVID-19 pandemic has had and is currently having a significant impact on Skechers’ business, financial conditions, cash flow and results of operations. Forward-looking statements with respect to the COVID-19 pandemic include, without limitation, Skechers’ plans in response to this pandemic. At this time, there is significant uncertainty about the COVID-19 pandemic, including without limitation, (i) the duration and extent of the impact of the pandemic, (ii) governmental responses to the pandemic, including how such responses could impact Skechers’ business and operations, as well as the operations of its factories and other business partners, (iii) the effectiveness of Skechers’ actions taken in response to these risks, and (iv) Skechers’ ability to effectively and timely adjust its plans in response to the rapidly changing retail and economic environment. Taking these and other risk factors associated with the COVID-19 pandemic into consideration, the dynamic nature of these circumstances means that what is stated in this press release could change at any time, and as a result, actual results could differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements. The risks included here are not exhaustive. Skechers operates in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks emerge from time to time and we cannot predict all such risk factors, nor can we assess the impact of all such risk factors on our business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, you should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. Moreover, reported results should not be considered an indication of future performance.

Contacts

Jennifer Clay

Skechers

jennc@skechers.com

Categories
Business

Majesco positioned as a visionary in Gartner 2020 Magic Quadrant for Life Insurance Policy Administration Systems, North America

MORRISTOWN, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Majesco (NASDAQ: MJCO), a global provider of cloud insurance platform software for insurance business transformation, today announced that it has been once again positioned as a Visionary in the August 2020 Magic Quadrant for Life Insurance Policy Administration Systems, North America.

Per the report, which evaluates 11 vendors, “This Magic Quadrant provides a lens into the North American market for life insurance policy administration system (PASs) used by individual and group life and annuity (L&A) insurers.”

As the COVID-19 pandemic has clearly demonstrated, business operating conditions can change dramatically overnight, and life insurance PASs and the infrastructure on which they operate must be scalable, secure and adaptable to change,” says Richard Natale, Senior Director Analyst and Rajesh Narayan, Senior Director Analyst in the report. “Life insurance CIOs should be evaluating their PASs now to determine the degree to which they enable, or are a barrier to, this type of resiliency in the face of disruption.”

The report notes that “in the next 12 to 18 months, life insurance IT budgets will be under pressure. CFOs and CEOs will look at discretionary budgets for convenient ways to cut expenses in an effort to preserve capital and cash, such as discretionary spending earmarked for digital innovation. However, the potential does exist where PAS modernization accelerates to address operational issues that have been uncovered due to the pandemic. This could also accelerate the need for a PAS modernization or replacement. Examples include:

  • Consumer behavior and a material shift to digital channels
  • Long-term changes in consumer demand for insurance products
  • Data and analytics needed to address changes in risk and actuarial models
  • A permanent shift to how and where people work
  • New uses for automation, such as touchless claims handling
  • Rapid response to a crisis with products such as parametric insurance
  • Potential governmental intervention and regulation”

Now more than ever, life insurance companies need a robust, cloud-based core insurance business platform that can satisfy the needs of today’s digital customer,” says Adam Elster, CEO of Majesco. “We’re honored to be named a Visionary by Gartner in the Magic Quadrant for Life Insurance Policy Administration Systems, North America. We remain committed to creating a future of insurance that is agile, nimble and fast. We are proud of the investments we’ve made this past year that we believe have strengthened our positioning on the Completeness of Vision axis. To us, this recognition reaffirms our commitment to creating an L&A and Group core system that will help our customers seamlessly transition to the future of insurance.”

Majesco L&A and Group Core Suite supports all individual, group and voluntary benefits on a single platform, recognizing that growing and retaining customers, regardless of where they originate, is critical to insurer’s growth strategies. The suite provides essential core system capabilities for policy, billing and claims. It brings a host of exciting, innovative capabilities to life, group and annuities insurance, such as an AI-powered group sales process to deliver digital RFP, an AI bot-driven conversational UX for navigation, and an always straight through processing approach to speed up transaction processing individually or across multiple points. The powerful design allows for rapid adaptation for new, innovative products or benefit plans, giving insurers the power, flexibility and speed needed to capture opportunities and create profitable growth.

Majesco L&A and Group Core Suite brings a strong, innovative solution to life, annuities, group and voluntary benefits insurance market that will digitally enable the business from traditional products to new parametric products in this new era of insurance,” stated Manish Shah, President and Chief Product Officer for Majesco. “In our opinion, our Visionary positioning in the Magic Quadrant for Life Insurance Policy Administration Systems, North America is a result of strong execution of the product vision and demonstrates our commitment to innovation and understanding of the emerging shift in new customer needs and expectations to help our customers gain market leadership with a new generation of customers.”

Gartner “Magic Quadrant for Life Insurance Policy Administration Systems, North America,” Richard Natale, Rajesh Narayan, 3 August 2020.

Gartner Disclaimer

Gartner does not endorse any vendor, product or service depicted in its research publications, and does not advise technology users to select only those vendors with the highest ratings or other designation. Gartner research publications consist of the opinions of Gartner’s research organization and should not be construed as statements of fact. Gartner disclaims all warranties, expressed or implied, with respect to this research, including any warranties of merchantability or fitness for a particular purpose.

About Majesco

Majesco (NASDAQ: MJCO) provides technology, expertise, and leadership that helps insurers modernize, innovate and connect to build the future of their business – and the future of insurance – at speed and scale. Our platforms connect people and businesses to insurance in ways that are innovative, hyper-relevant, compelling and personal. Over 200 insurance companies worldwide in P&C, L&A and Group Benefits are transforming their businesses by modernizing, optimizing or creating new business models with Majesco. Our market-leading solutions include CloudInsurer® P&C Core Suite (Policy, Billing, Claims); CloudInsurer® LifePlus Solutions (AdminPlus, AdvicePlus, IllustratePlus, DistributionPlus); CloudInsurer® L&A and Group Core Suite (Policy, Billing, Claims); Digital1st® Insurance with Digital1st® Engagement, Digital1st® EcoExchange and Digital1st® Platform – a cloud-native, microservices and open API platform; Distribution Management, Data and Analytics and an Enterprise Data Warehouse. For more details on Majesco, please visit www.majesco.com.

Cautionary Language Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. These forward-looking statements are made on the basis of the current beliefs, expectations and assumptions of management, are not guarantees of performance and are subject to significant risks and uncertainty. These forward-looking statements should, therefore, be considered in light of various important factors, including those set forth in Majesco’s reports that it files from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission and which you should review, including those statements under “Item 1A – Risk Factors” in Majesco’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, as amended by its Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q.

Important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in forward-looking statements contained in this press release include, but are not limited to: the adverse impact on economies around the world and our customers of the current COVID-19 pandemic; our ability to achieve increased market penetration for our product and service offerings and obtain new customers; our ability to raise future capital as needed; the growth prospects of the property & casualty and life & annuity insurance industry; the strength and potential of our technology platform and our ability to innovate and anticipate future customer needs; our ability to compete successfully against other providers and products; data privacy and cyber security risks; technological disruptions; our ability to successfully integrate our acquisitions and identify new acquisitions; the risk of loss of customers or strategic relationships; the success of our research and development investments; changes in economic conditions, political conditions and trade protection measures; regulatory and tax law changes; immigration risks; our ability to obtain, use or successfully integrate third-party licensed technology; key personnel risks; and litigation risks.

These forward-looking statements should not be relied upon as predictions of future events and Majesco cannot assure you that the events or circumstances discussed or reflected in these statements will be achieved or will occur. If such forward-looking statements prove to be inaccurate, the inaccuracy may be material. You should not regard these statements as a representation or warranty by Majesco or any other person that we will achieve our objectives and plans in any specified timeframe, or at all. You are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this presentation. Majesco disclaims any obligation to publicly update or release any revisions to these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, after the date of this press release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events, except as required by law.

Contacts

Laura Tillotson

Director, Marketing Communications and Creative Services

+ 201 230 0752

laura.tillotson@majesco.com

Categories
Business

Movado Group, Inc. announces second quarter results

~ Second Quarter Net Sales of $88.5 million ~

~ Second Quarter Loss Per Share of ($0.28), or ($0.07) Excluding Restructuring Plan and Other Items ~

~ Ends Second Quarter with Cash of $170 million ~

~ Announces Licensing Partnership with Calvin Klein ~

PARAMUS, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Movado Group, Inc. (NYSE: MOV) today announced second quarter and six-month results for the period ended July 31, 2020.

Efraim Grinberg, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, stated, “We remain focused on ensuring the safety and health of our employees, customers and the communities where we operate. In a quarter that was significantly impacted globally by the COVID-19 pandemic, I am proud of our team’s ability to build on our multi-year investments in our digital center of excellence and adapt to support our ongoing mission to put consumers first, allowing them to connect with our great brands, designs and platforms wherever and whenever they choose to shop. These efforts allowed us to capture strong online demand where our Movado brand generated a 130% increase in our own and third party ecommerce sales. In North America, we reopened our outlet stores in June and were encouraged by the improved sequential performance in July, despite reduced stores hours. We are also seeing encouraging demand in our domestic department store channel. In China, we had a 16% increase in sales for the quarter with trends continuing to accelerate and we had positive top line growth in France and Germany, despite our customers being closed for nearly half of the quarter.”

Mr. Grinberg continued, “The aggressive actions we took at the height of the pandemic have positioned us well to continue to navigate the current environment. We have implemented initiatives that are expected to generate $90 million in cost savings in this fiscal year and have strengthened our financial health as evidenced by our cash balance of $170 million after repaying $37 million on our revolver at quarter end. As we look to the remainder of the year, we continue to expect improving sales trends in the second half relative to the first half with improved profitability and we will continue to be disciplined and agile in managing the business given the continued uncertainty. The actions we have taken, combined with our strong liquidity, enable us to leverage our powerful portfolio of brands which will be further strengthened by the exciting new licensing partnership announced today to design and develop Calvin Klein timepieces and jewelry. As a result, we have confidence that we will emerge from this extraordinary period a stronger company that is even better positioned to deliver long-term shareholder value.”

Non-GAAP Items (See attached table for GAAP and Non-GAAP measures)

Second quarter fiscal 2021 results of operations included the following items:

  • Operating expenses include a $0.7 million pre-tax charge, or $0.5 million after tax, representing $0.02 per diluted share, associated with the amortization of acquired intangible assets related to the acquisition of Olivia Burton;
  • $0.3 million pre-tax charge, or $0.2 million after tax, representing $0.01 per diluted share, associated with the amortization of acquired intangible assets and deferred compensation related to the acquisition of MVMT;
  • $7.4 million pre-tax charge, or $5.0 million after tax, representing $0.22 per diluted share, related to corporate initiatives primarily in response to the COVID-19 pandemic; and
  • Other non-operating income includes a $1.3 million pre-tax gain, or $0.8 million after tax, representing $0.04 per diluted share, associated with the sale of a non-operating asset in Switzerland.

Second quarter Fiscal 2020 results of operations included the following items:

  • Operating expenses include a $0.7 million pre-tax charge, or $0.6 million after tax, representing $0.02 per diluted share, associated with the amortization of acquired intangible assets related to Olivia Burton;
  • $1.1 million pre-tax charge, or $0.9 million after tax, representing $0.04 per diluted share, associated with the amortization of acquired intangible assets and deferred compensation related to the acquisition of MVMT;
  • $0.3 million pre-tax gain, or $0.2 million after tax, representing $0.01 per diluted share, associated with the change in estimate of the remaining accrual for the fiscal 2018 cost saving initiatives; and
  • Other non-operating income includes a $13.6 million pre-tax benefit, or $10.4 million after tax, representing $0.44 per diluted share, associated with the remeasurement of the contingent consideration liability associated with the MVMT acquisition.

Second Quarter Fiscal 2021 (See attached table for GAAP and Non-GAAP measures)

  • Net sales decreased 43.9% to $88.5 million compared to $157.8 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2020 primarily due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Net sales on a constant dollar basis also decreased 43.9%.
  • Gross profit was $45.4 million, or 51.2% of sales, compared to $85.3 million, or 54.1% of sales, in the second quarter last year. The decrease in gross margin percentage was primarily the result of unfavorable changes in channel and product mix, decreased leverage on fixed costs due to decreased sales, and U.S. special tariff headwinds.
  • Operating expenses were $54.3 million compared to $76.6 million in the prior year period. For the second quarter of fiscal 2021, adjusted operating expenses were $45.9 million, which excludes the operating expense charges mentioned above in the Non-GAAP Items section. For the second quarter of fiscal 2020, adjusted operating expenses were $75.1 million, which excludes the operating expense charges mentioned above in the Non-GAAP Items section. The decrease in adjusted operating expenses was primarily due to the Company’s initiative to minimize all non-essential operating expenses such as certain marketing, selling and payroll related expenses.
  • Operating loss was $8.9 million compared to operating income of $8.8 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2020. Adjusted operating loss for the second quarter of fiscal 2021 was $0.6 million, which excludes the fiscal 2021 charges listed above in the Non-GAAP Items section, compared to adjusted operating income for the second quarter of fiscal 2020 of $10.3 million, which excludes the fiscal 2020 charges listed above in the Non-GAAP Items section.
  • The Company recorded a tax benefit of $1.6 million compared to a tax provision of $4.7 million in the second quarter of fiscal 2020. The Company recorded an adjusted tax provision in the second quarter of fiscal 2021 of $0.6 million compared to an adjusted tax provision of $1.8 million for the second quarter of fiscal 2020.
  • Net loss was $6.6 million, or $0.28 per diluted share, compared to net income of $17.5 million, or $0.75 per diluted share, in the second quarter of fiscal 2020 . Adjusted net loss for the fiscal 2021 period was $1.7 million, or $0.07 per diluted share, which excludes the second quarter fiscal 2021 net charges listed above in the Non-GAAP Items section after the associated tax effects. This compares to adjusted net income in the second quarter of fiscal 2020 of $8.3 million, or $0.36 per diluted share, which excludes the second quarter fiscal 2020 net charges listed above in the Non-GAAP Items section after the associated tax effects.

First Half Fiscal 2021 (See attached table for GAAP and Non-GAAP measures)

  • Net sales were $158.2 million compared to $304.4 million in the first six months of fiscal 2020, a decrease of 48.0% primarily due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Net sales on a constant dollar basis decreased 47.8%.
  • Gross profit was $77.2 million, or 48.8% of sales, compared to $164.2 million, or 54.0% of sales in the same period last year. Adjusted gross profit for the first six months of fiscal 2021, which excludes $3.5 million in corporate initiative charges related to the impact to the business of the COVID-19 pandemic, was $80.8 million, or 51.0% of net sales. Adjusted gross profit for the first six months of fiscal 2020, which excludes $0.1 million in adjustments associated with the amortization of acquisition accounting adjustments related to the MVMT acquisition, was $164.4 million, or 54.0% of net sales. The decrease in adjusted gross margin percentage was primarily the result of decreased leverage on fixed costs due to decreased sales, unfavorable changes in channel and product mix, unfavorable foreign currency exchange rates and U.S. special tariff headwinds.
  • Operating expenses were $268.3 million as compared to $150.5 million in the first six months of last fiscal year. For the first six months of fiscal 2021, adjusted operating expenses were $99.0 million, which excludes $155.9 million in adjustments related to the impairment of goodwill and certain intangible assets, $11.1 million in corporate initiative charges related to the impact to the business from the COVID-19 pandemic, $1.4 million of expenses associated with the amortization of acquired intangible assets related to Olivia Burton and $1.0 million in adjustments associated with the amortization of acquired intangible assets and deferred compensation related to the MVMT acquisition. For the first six months of fiscal 2020, adjusted operating expenses were $146.9 million, which excludes $1.4 million of expenses associated with the amortization of acquired intangible assets related to Olivia Burton and $2.5 million in adjustments associated with the amortization of acquired intangible assets, accounting adjustments and deferred compensation related to the MVMT acquisition, partially offset by $0.3 million in adjustments associated with the change in estimate of the remaining accrual for the fiscal 2018 cost saving initiatives. The decrease in adjusted operating expenses was primarily due to the Company’s initiative to minimize all non-essential operating expenses such as certain marketing, selling and payroll related expenses.
  • Operating loss was $191.1 million compared to operating income of $13.8 million in the first six months of fiscal 2020. Adjusted operating loss for the first six months of fiscal 2021 was $18.2 million, which excludes the fiscal 2021 charges listed in the immediately preceding bullet, compared to adjusted operating income of $17.4 million in the first six months of fiscal 2020 which excludes the fiscal 2020 net charges listed in the immediately preceding bullet.
  • The Company recorded a tax benefit in the first six months of fiscal 2021 of $33.9 million as compared to a tax provision of $5.6 million in the first six months of last year. Based upon adjusted pre-tax income, the adjusted tax benefit was $4.3 million in the first half of fiscal 2021 compared to an adjusted tax provision of $3.1 million in the first half of fiscal 2020.
  • Net loss was $156.6 million, or $6.75 per diluted share, compared to net income of $21.4 million, or $0.92 per diluted share, in the first six months of fiscal 2020. Adjusted net loss for the first half of fiscal 2021 was $14.7 million, or $0.63 per diluted shares, which excludes $131.1 million, net of $24.9 million of tax, in adjustments related to the impairment of goodwill and certain intangible assets, $10.0 million, net of $4.6 million of tax, in corporate initiative charges related to the impact to the business from the COVID-19 pandemic, $1.1 million, net of $0.3 million of tax, of expenses associated with the amortization of acquired intangible assets related to Olivia Burton and $0.6 million, net of $0.4 million of tax, in adjustments associated with the amortization of acquired intangible assets and deferred compensation related to the MVMT acquisition, and $0.8 million, net of $0.5 million of tax, associated with a gain on the sale of a non-operating asset in Switzerland. This compares to adjusted net income for the first half of fiscal 2020 of $13.9 million, or $0.60 per diluted share, which excludes $1.1 million, net of $0.3 million of tax, of expenses associated with the amortization of acquired intangible assets related to Olivia Burton; $2.0 million, net of $0.6 million of tax, of expenses related to the amortization of acquired intangible assets, accounting adjustments and deferred compensation related to MVMT; $10.4 million, net of $3.3 million of tax, of gains associated with the remeasurement of the contingent consideration liability associated with the MVMT acquisition; and $0.2 million, net of $0.1 million of tax, of gains associated with the change in estimate of the remaining accrual for the fiscal 2018 cost saving initiatives.

Fiscal 2021 Outlook

Given the dynamic nature of the COVID-19 crisis and lack of visibility, the potential financial impact to the business cannot be reasonably estimated. The Company is not providing fiscal 2021 guidance.

Conference Call

The Company’s management will host a conference call and audio webcast to discuss its results today, August 27, 2020 at 9:00 a.m. Eastern Time. The conference call may be accessed by dialing (877) 407-0784. Additionally, a live webcast of the call can be accessed at www.movadogroup.com. The webcast will be archived on the Company’s website approximately one hour after the conclusion of the call. Additionally, a telephonic re-play of the call will be available at 12:00 p.m. ET on August 27, 2020 until 11:59 p.m. ET on September 10, 2020 and can be accessed by dialing (844) 512-2921 and entering replay pin number 13708469.

Movado Group, Inc. designs, sources, and distributes MOVADO®, MVMT®, OLIVIA BURTON®, EBEL®, CONCORD®, COACH®, TOMMY HILFIGER®, HUGO BOSS®, LACOSTE®, SCUDERIA FERRARI®, REBECCA MINKOFF® and URI MINKOFF® watches worldwide, and operates Movado company stores in the United States and Canada.

In this release, the Company presents certain financial measures that are not calculated according to generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (“GAAP”). Specifically, the Company is presenting adjusted gross profit, adjusted gross margin, adjusted operating expenses and adjusted operating income, which are gross profit, gross margin, operating expenses and operating income, respectively, under GAAP, adjusted to eliminate the amortization of acquisition accounting adjustments related to the Olivia Burton and MVMT acquisitions, corporate initiatives and the impairment of goodwill and certain intangible assets. The Company is also presenting adjusted tax provision, which is the tax provision under GAAP, adjusted to eliminate the impact of charges for the Olivia Burton and MVMT acquisitions, corporate initiatives, the impairment of goodwill and certain intangible assets and the gain on sale of a non-operating asset. The Company believes these adjusted measures are useful because they give investors information about the Company’s financial performance without the effect of certain items that the Company believes are not characteristic of its usual operations. The Company is also presenting adjusted net income, adjusted earnings per share and adjusted effective tax rate, which are net income, earnings per share and effective tax rate, respectively, under GAAP, adjusted to eliminate the after-tax impact of amortization of acquisition accounting adjustments related to the Olivia Burton and MVMT acquisitions, corporate initiatives, the impairment of goodwill and certain intangibles and the gain on sale of a non-operating asset. The Company believes that adjusted net income, adjusted earnings per share and adjusted effective tax rate are useful measures of performance because they give investors information about the Company’s financial performance without the effect of certain items that the Company believes are not characteristic of its usual operations. Additionally, the Company is presenting constant currency information to provide a framework to assess how its business performed excluding the effects of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations in the current period. Comparisons of financial results on a constant dollar basis are calculated by translating each foreign currency at the same US dollar exchange rate as in effect for the prior-year period for both periods being compared. The Company believes this information is useful to investors to facilitate comparisons of operating results. These non-GAAP financial measures are designed to complement the GAAP financial information presented in this release. The non-GAAP financial measures presented should not be considered in isolation from or as a substitute for the comparable GAAP financial measures, and the methods of their calculation may differ substantially from similarly titled measures used by other companies.

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The Company has tried, whenever possible, to identify these forward-looking statements using words such as “expects,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “targets,” “goals,” “projects,” “intends,” “plans,” “seeks,” “estimates,” “may,” “will,” “should” and variations of such words and similar expressions. Similarly, statements in this press release that describe the Company’s business strategy, outlook, objectives, plans, intentions or goals are also forward-looking statements. Accordingly, such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results, performance or achievements and levels of future dividends to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied by, these statements. These risks and uncertainties may include, but are not limited to general economic and business conditions which may impact disposable income of consumers in the United States and the other significant markets (including Europe) where the Company’s products are sold, uncertainty regarding such economic and business conditions, trends in consumer debt levels and bad debt write-offs, general uncertainty related to possible terrorist attacks, natural disasters, pandemics, including the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic and other diseases on travel and traffic in our retail stores and the stores of our wholesale customers, supply disruptions and delivery delays from our Chinese and other suppliers as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, adverse impact on the Company’s wholesale customers and customer traffic in the Company’s stores as a result of increased uncertainty and economic disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the stability of the European Union (including the impact of the United Kingdom’s process to exit from the European Union), the stability of the United Kingdom after its exit from the European Union, and defaults on or downgrades of sovereign debt and the impact of any of those events on consumer spending, changes in consumer preferences and popularity of particular designs, new product development and introduction, decrease in mall traffic and increase in e-commerce, the ability of the Company to successfully implement its business strategies, competitive products and pricing, the impact of “smart” watches and other wearable tech products on the traditional watch market, seasonality, availability of alternative sources of supply in the case of the loss of any significant supplier or any supplier’s inability to fulfill the Company’s orders, the loss of or curtailed sales to significant customers, the Company’s dependence on key employees and officers, the ability to successfully integrate the operations of acquired businesses without disruption to other business activities, the possible impairment of acquired intangible assets including goodwill if the carrying value of any reporting unit were to exceed its fair value, volatility in reported earnings resulting from changes in the estimated fair value of contingent acquisition consideration, the continuation of the company’s major warehouse and distribution centers, the continuation of licensing arrangements with third parties, losses possible from pending or future litigation, the ability to secure and protect trademarks, patents and other intellectual property rights, the ability to lease new stores on suitable terms in desired markets and to complete construction on a timely basis, the ability of the Company to successfully manage its expenses on a continuing basis, information systems failure or breaches of network security, the continued availability to the Company of financing and credit on favorable terms, business disruptions, and general risks associated with doing business outside the United States including, without limitation, import duties, tariffs (including retaliatory tariffs), quotas, political and economic stability, changes to existing laws or regulations, and success of hedging strategies with respect to currency exchange rate fluctuations, and the other factors discussed in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. These statements reflect the Company’s current beliefs and are based upon information currently available to it. Be advised that developments subsequent to this press release are likely to cause these statements to become outdated with the passage of time. The Company assumes no duty to update its forward looking statements and this release shall not be construed to indicate the assumption by the Company of any duty to update its outlook in the future.

(Tables to follow)

MOVADO GROUP, INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(In thousands, except per share data)
(Unaudited)

Three Months Ended

Six Months Ended

July 31,

July 31,

2020

2019

2020

2019

Net sales

$

88,538

$

157,816

$

158,204

$

304,365

Cost of sales

43,182

72,477

80,955

140,153

Gross profit

45,356

85,339

77,249

164,212

Operating expenses

54,272

76,563

112,409

150,462

Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets

155,919

Total operating expenses

54,272

76,563

268,328

150,462

Operating (loss)/income

(8,916

)

8,776

(191,079

)

13,750

Non-operating (expense)/income:
Gain on sale of a non-operating asset

1,317

1,317

Change in contingent consideration

13,627

13,627

Interest expense

(590

)

(225

)

(861

)

(449

)

Interest income

8

24

23

45

(Loss)/Income before income taxes

(8,181

)

22,202

(190,600

)

26,973

(Benefit)/Provision for income taxes

(1,559

)

4,741

(33,889

)

5,588

Net (loss)/income

(6,622

)

17,461

(156,711

)

21,385

Less: Net loss attributable to noncontrolling interests

(7

)

(44

)

(103

)

(45

)

Net (loss)/income attributable to Movado Group, Inc.

$

(6,615

)

$

17,505

$

(156,608

)

$

21,430

Diluted Income Per Share Information
Net (loss)/income attributable to Movado Group, Inc.

$

(0.28

)

$

0.75

$

(6.75

)

$

0.92

Weighted diluted average shares outstanding

23,240

23,292

23,191

23,370

MOVADO GROUP, INC.
GAAP AND NON-GAAP MEASURES
(In thousands, except for percentage data)
(Unaudited)

As Reported

Three Months Ended

July 31,

% Change

2020

2019

Total net sales, as reported

$

88,538

$

157,816

-43.9

%

Total net sales, constant dollar basis

$

88,461

$

157,816

-43.9

%

As Reported

Six Months Ended

July 31,

% Change

2020

2019

Total net sales, as reported

$

158,204

$

304,365

-48.0

%

Total net sales, constant dollar basis

$

158,813

$

304,365

-47.8

%

MOVADO GROUP, INC.
GAAP AND NON-GAAP MEASURES
(In thousands, except per share data)
(Unaudited)

Net Sales

Gross Profit

Operating

(Loss)/Income

Pre-tax

(Loss)/Income

(Benefit)/Provision

for Income Taxes

Net

(Loss)/Income

Attributable to

Movado Group,

Inc.

Diluted EPS

Three Months Ended July 31, 2020
As Reported (GAAP)

$

88,538

$

45,356

$

(8,916

)

$

(8,181

)

$

(1,559

)

$

(6,615

)

$

(0.28

)

Olivia Burton Costs (1)

671

671

139

532

$

0.02

MVMT Costs (2)

284

284

108

176

$

0.01

Gain On Sale of a Non-Operating Asset (3)

(1,317

)

(474

)

(843

)

$

(0.04

)

Corporate Initiatives (4)

7,368

7,368

2,353

5,015

$

0.22

Adjusted Results (Non-GAAP)

$

88,538

$

45,356

$

(593

)

$

(1,175

)

$

567

$

(1,735

)

$

(0.07

)

Three Months Ended July 31, 2019
As Reported (GAAP)

$

157,816

$

85,339

$

8,776

$

22,202

$

4,741

$

17,505

$

0.75

Olivia Burton Costs (1)

690

690

131

559

0.02

MVMT Costs (2)

1,125

1,125

270

855

0.04

Change In Contingent Consideration (5)

(13,627

)

(3,270

)

(10,357

)

(0.44

)

Cost Savings Initiatives (6)

(320

)

(320

)

(77

)

(243

)

(0.01

)

Adjusted Results (Non-GAAP)

$

157,816

$

85,339

$

10,271

$

10,070

$

1,795

$

8,319

$

0.36

Net Sales Gross Profit Operating
(Loss)/Income
Pre-tax
(Loss)/Income
(Benefit)/Provision
for Income Taxes
Net
(Loss)/Income
Attributable to
Movado Group,
Inc.
Diluted EPS
Six Months Ended July 31, 2020
As Reported (GAAP)

$

158,204

$

77,249

$

(191,079

)

$

(190,600

)

$

(33,889

)

$

(156,608

)

$

(6.75

)

Olivia Burton Costs (1)

1,356

1,356

258

1,098

$

0.05

MVMT Costs (2)

981

981

373

608

$

0.03

Goodwill and Intangible Asset Impairment (7)

155,919

155,919

24,867

131,052

$

5.65

Gain On Sale of a Non-Operating Asset (3)

(1,317

)

(474

)

(843

)

$

(0.04

)

Corporate Initiatives (4)

3,508

14,608

14,608

4,592

10,016

$

0.43

Adjusted Results (Non-GAAP)

$

158,204

$

80,757

$

(18,215

)

$

(19,053

)

$

(4,273

)

$

(14,677

)

$

(0.63

)

Six Months Ended July 31, 2019
As Reported (GAAP)

$

304,365

$

164,212

$

13,750

$

26,973

$

5,588

$

21,430

$

0.92

Olivia Burton Costs (1)

1,402

1,402

266

1,136

0.05

MVMT Costs (2)

140

2,598

2,598

624

1,974

0.08

Change In Contingent Consideration (5)

(13,627

)

(3,270

)

(10,357

)

(0.44

)

Cost Savings Initiatives (6)

(320

)

(320

)

(77

)

(243

)

(0.01

)

Adjusted Results (Non-GAAP)

$

304,365

$

164,352

$

17,430

$

17,026

$

3,131

$

13,940

$

0.60

Contacts

ICR, Inc.

Rachel Schacter/Allison Malkin

203-682-8200

Read full story here

Categories
Business

CS Energy achieves 1 gigawatt installed of solar projects

National EPC energy firm, majority owned by funds managed by Ares Management Corporation, achieved significant milestone in August 2020

EDISON, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–CS Energy, LLC, a leading integrated energy firm that designs and builds optimized projects in the solar, storage and emerging energy industries, announced today that it has reached a major milestone: completing the installation of 1 gigawatt of solar energy projects.


The 1 GW achievement puts CS Energy in a distinguished category. According to Solar Power World’s Top Solar Contractors* rankings, fewer than 10 EPCs have installed 1 GW of solar as of 2020, but with CS Energy’s consistent 20 percent annual growth rate, the milestone was reached quickly. The company closed 2018 with 650 MW of completed solar projects and ended 2019 with 820 MW. In 2020, CS Energy reached 1,000 MW, despite industry contractions resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This is an incredible milestone, and one only possible because of the hard work and dedication of our team,” shared Matthew Skidmore, CEO of CS Energy. “I am so proud of our talented workforce, which has completed CS Energy projects to the highest standards of quality and safety across the country. We’re excited to put our deep experience to work for our clients as we begin installing the next gigawatt.”

CS Energy has completed nearly 200 solar projects across 16 states, in a mix of utility-scale solar projects and energy storage projects. Much of the 1 GW has been completed in the last three years as the firm manages increasingly larger projects, such as a recent 29 MW solar project in New Jersey. The growth coincides with funds managed by the Infrastructure and Power strategy of Ares Management Corporation taking majority ownership of the company in 2018.

“We made a strategic investment in CS Energy knowing the firm had the capabilities to expand its impact on renewable energy projects across the country,” shared Keith Derman, Partner and Co-Head of Ares Infrastructure and Power. “We are thrilled that CS Energy has been able to achieve such a substantial milestone and consider it a testament to the company’s legacy of experience and reliability.”

The 1 GW accomplishment comes as CS Energy garners additional recognition from the solar industry. CS Energy was named the nation’s number-one commercial solar installer in 2019 by global research firm Wood Mackenzie. With more than 10 percent of the U.S. market share, CS Energy installed as much as the second- and third-ranked companies combined. In 2020, CS Energy once again made Solar Power World magazine’s annual list of Top Solar Contractors, ranking in the Top 10 for national EPCs, and as the #1 solar contractor in both New York and New Jersey.

Additionally, the company utilizes its expertise to lead a variety of solar industry subsectors. CS Energy is considered an expert in landfill solar installations, having installed more than 160 MW on top of closed capped landfills. CS Energy is also on the forefront of Solar + Storage projects: the company has installed more than 135 MWh of energy storage projects and is ranked as the #2 Solar + Storage installer in the nation by Solar Power World.

Starting with just 12 employees in 2004, the company has grown to a highly skilled team of more than 160 people. CS Energy began in the solar industry as part of The Conti Group, a construction and engineering firm that has been operating for more than 115 years. Building on the organic success in the solar industry, the group branched out into Conti Solar, a wholly owned subsidiary of The Conti Group, in 2017. Conti Solar was majority acquired by funds managed by the Infrastructure and Power strategy of Ares Management Corporation in 2018 the company rebranded as CS Energy.

“CS Energy is thriving from the roots planted at The Conti Group—roots in skilled construction, quality customer service, and an educated leadership group. It’s been a pleasure to see CS Energy deliver on our shared vision of creating a nation-leading integrated energy company,” said Kurt Conti, Chairman of the Board of The Conti Group.

* https://www.solarpowerworldonline.com/2020-top-solar-contractors/

About CS Energy

CS Energy is an industry-leading engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) energy firm that designs and builds optimized projects in solar, energy storage, and emerging energy industries. CS Energy’s attention to detail, flawless execution and highly talented workforce has enabled the company to successfully design and install over 1 GW of solar projects across the United States. CS Energy leverages strong relationships with solar developers, IPPs, utilities, off-takers, suppliers, and landowners to help our customers streamline the project development process, lower project costs, and create value for all stakeholders. Majority-owned by Ares Infrastructure and Power, CS Energy has an experienced and committed management team and the financial resources required to continue expanding its solar and energy storage business as a trusted and long-term partner.

About Ares Management Corporation

Ares Management Corporation (NYSE: ARES) is a leading global alternative investment manager operating integrated businesses across Credit, Private Equity and Real Estate. Ares Management’s investment groups collaborate to deliver innovative investment solutions and consistent and attractive investment returns for fund investors throughout market cycles. Ares Management’s global platform had approximately $165 billion of assets under management as of June 30, 2020 with more than 1,300 employees operating across North America, Europe, Asia and Australia, pro forma for the acquisition of SSG Capital Holdings Limited which closed on July 1, 2020.

About Ares Infrastructure and Power

Ares Infrastructure and Power (“AIP”) strategy seeks to provide flexible capital for cash-generating assets across the climate infrastructure, natural gas generation, and energy transportation sectors. AIP leverages a broadly skilled and cohesive team of more than 25 investment professionals with deep domain experience and has deployed nearly $9 billion of capital in more than 200 different infrastructure and power assets and companies.

About The Conti Group

The Conti Group is a privately held group of companies spanning the construction, engineering, renewable energy, real estate, technology and biotech markets whose mission is to create positive impact and great value for customers, partners, employees, and society.

Contacts

CS Energy Media:
Dianaliz Santiago-Borcan

732.520.5143

dborcan@csenergy.com

Categories
Business

AM Best: Pandemic, economic issues dampen Chile insurance market (AM BestTV)

OLDWICK, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–In this episode of AMBestTV, Eli Sanchez, associate director, AM Best, said the rating agency’s negative market segment outlook on Chile’s insurance sector is based on declines in insurance activity, tied to the pandemic and longer-running economic issues. Click on http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=chileoutlook_english720 to view the entire program.

Sanchez addressed to what extent COVID-19 is affecting insurers in Chile.

“As of March 2020, there has been a 10% contraction in the overall insurance industry,” said Sanchez. “There was a contraction of around 1.8% last year. AM Best has seen declines, especially in the life side, related to annuities, some accident and health, as well as the property/casualty segment. Additionally, there has been lower economic activity. As of May, the monthly economic indicator contracted by approximately 15%. That puts a lot of pressure on underlying industries that use insurance as a way of protecting its relative assets.”

Chile is having economic problems that the pandemic has exacerbated. Sanchez spoke about how COVID-19 has affected insurers’ ability to grow.

“With lower global economic activity, there have been tensions, specifically commercial tensions between China and the United States. These countries are important partners for Chile. These tensions have created a lot of flight to quality, which have threaten the Chilean peso. In addition, with the tensions in trade, copper prices have come down. That limits a lot of the growth that could happen in the country, which in turn affects a lot that could happen in the demand for insurance.”

To view this video in Spanish, please go to http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=chileoutlook_spanish720.

To access the related market segment report, titled, “Market Segment Outlook: Chile Insurance,” please visit http://www3.ambest.com/bestweek/purchase.asp?record_code=532765.

Recent AMBestTV coverage includes:

  • AM Best: Cyber Insurance Profitability Challenged by New Risks: AM Best analysts say standalone cyber insurance premiums are growing as companies reduce silent cyber risk: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=ambcyber720.
  • BDO Director: Companies Should Review Hurricane Response Plans: The COVID-19 pandemic adds a layer of complexity to hurricane response plans, said James MacDonnell, director of crisis management/ business continuity at BDO, an advisory firm: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=macdonnell820.
  • ITC Conference Expands to Month Long ‘Celebration of Insurtech Innovation’: InsureTech Connect is launching ‘ITC September to Remember’ leading up to its flagship global conference, said Mee-Jung Jang, president, InsureTech Connect: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=itc820.
  • Allianz: Docked Cruise Ships in Hurricane-Prone Areas Are ‘Hot Spots’ to Watch: Cruise ships grounded due to the pandemic are among risks requiring “constant vigilance,” said Andrew Kinsey, senior marine risk consultant, Allianz Global Corporate & Specialty: http://www.ambest.com/v.asp?v=covidshipping820.

AM BestTV covers exclusive AM Best and insurance industry information and reports, targeted topics and key developments in the insurance, reinsurance and related sectors daily. Sign up for alerts of episodes at www.ambest.com/multimedia/ambtvsignup.html. View AM BestTV episodes at www.ambest.tv.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in New York, London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright © 2020 by A.M. Best Company, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Contacts

Lee McDonald
Group Vice President, Publication and News Services
+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5561
lee.mcdonald@ambest.com

Categories
Business

AM BestTV presents ‘An Industry Transformed’: Digitally native, not by choice

OLDWICK, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Top industry leaders share their thoughts about the pandemic and its impact on the insurance industry in the four-part series, “An Industry Transformed.”

Insurers are learning how to operate, distribute and respond in an all-digital environment. In this segment, a panel discusses the lessons insurers learned during the shutdown, and how they are reshaping operations, sales, product delivery and customer interactions. Watch now: www.ambest.com/ambtv/digital.

Panelists include:

  • Bill Pieroni, president and chief executive officer, ACORD;
  • Sean Ringsted, executive vice president, chief risk officer and chief digital officer, Chubb Group; and
  • Tanguy Catlin, senior partner, McKinsey & Company.

AM Best is a global credit rating agency, news publisher and data analytics provider specializing in the insurance industry. Headquartered in the United States, the company does business in over 100 countries with regional offices in New York, London, Amsterdam, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and Mexico City. For more information, visit www.ambest.com.

Copyright © 2020 by A.M. Best Company, Inc. and/or its affiliates. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

Contacts

Lee McDonald
Group Vice President, Publication and News Services
+1 908 439 2200, ext. 5561
lee.mcdonald@ambest.com

Categories
Healthcare

MJH Life Sciences™ continues moving all live events to virtual through first quarter of 2021

Industry giant will continue to leverage its proprietary online virtual platform and technology through at least March 2021

CRANBURY, N.J.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#CME–MJH Life Sciences confirmed today that all conferences, satellite symposia, award programs and educational programming produced by the privately owned health care media company will take place in virtual format through March 2021.

From the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, MJH Life Sciences has adapted existing events and developed new programs to provide timely, critical health care information and education wherever clinicians are.

“Because of our state-of-the-art in-house studio and technology platforms, we were able to pivot successfully to virtual programming right from the start of the COVID-19 lockdown,” said Mike Hennessy Jr., president, and CEO of MJH Life Sciences. “Events and education are key pillars of how we deliver on our mission to help health care professionals improve quality of life. So, we have taken great care to ensure we are delivering the greatest value, content, and accessibility, all while remaining comfortable and safe. The further upside of our decision is that even more people will be able to experience our events and continuing education without having to decide whether travel is safe enough for them – plus it will help us deliver value to and continue to build our growing global presence.”

Since March, MJH has hosted more than 600 virtual events in various formats, with a combined attendance of over 200,000 health care professionals. Most recently, MJH produced the widely attended and highly rated “COVID-19: A Race for a Vaccine” webinar to help provide clarity and insight about current clinical trials and to address questions regarding distribution of potential COVID-19 vaccines.

The experience gained and lessons learned from producing hundreds of virtual events over the past 4+ months have resulted in knowledge and understanding that will help MJH continue to optimize and perfects its future events. Upcoming large-scale virtual events include Fetch dvm360® Conference, Pharmacy Benefit Management Institute’s 26th Annual National Conference, Physicians’ Education Resource® (PER®), Chemotherapy Foundation Symposium (CFS®), Miami Breast Cancer Conference®, and PTCE’s legacy Directions in Oncology Pharmacy and Directions in Pharmacy® spring conference series.

About MJH Life Sciences

MJH Life Sciences is the largest privately held, independent, full-service medical media company in North America dedicated to delivering trusted health care news across multiple channels, providing health care professionals with the information and resources they need to optimize patient outcomes. MJH Life Sciences combines the reach and influence of its powerful portfolio of digital and print product lines, live events, educational programs and market research with the customization capabilities of a boutique firm. Clients include world-leading pharmaceutical, medical device, diagnostic and biotech companies. For more information, visit https://www.mjhlifesciences.com/.

Contacts

MJH Life Sciences Media Contact
Alexandra Ventura, 609-716-7777, ext. 121

aventura@mjhlifesciences.com