HOUSTON, July 18, 2013 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- HCC Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:HCC) today announced that Standard & Poor's Corporation has affirmed the Financial Strength Ratings (FSR) of "AA" for the following insurance company subsidiaries:
- Houston Casualty Company
- Avemco Insurance Company
- U.S. Specialty Insurance Company
- HCC Specialty Insurance Company
- HCC Life Insurance Company
- American Contractors Indemnity Company
- United States Surety Company
- HCC International Insurance Company PLC
- HCC Europe Seguros y Reaseguros, S.A.
- HCC Reinsurance Company Limited
Additionally, the Issuer Credit Rating for HCC Insurance Holdings, Inc. was affirmed at "A," and the debt rating on the $300 million 6.300% Senior Notes due 2019 of the holding company remains at "A."
For the affirmed ratings above, the Ratings Outlook is "Stable."
In addition, Standard & Poor's has affirmed HCC's Enterprise Risk Management (ERM) assessment of "Strong."
"We are very pleased that Standard & Poor's has affirmed our ratings under its new rating methodology. We are especially proud of Standard & Poor's recognition of our competitive strengths, strong balance sheet and consistent underwriting performance," said Christopher J.B. Williams, HCC's Chief Executive Officer.
Headquartered in Houston, Texas, HCC Insurance Holdings, Inc. is a leading specialty insurer with offices in the United States, the United Kingdom, Spain and Ireland. As of March 31, 2013, HCC had assets of $10.2 billion and shareholders' equity of $3.6 billion. HCC's major domestic and international insurance companies have financial strength ratings of "AA (Very Strong)" from Standard & Poor's Corporation, "A+ (Superior)" from A.M. Best Company, Inc., "AA (Very Strong)" from Fitch Ratings, and "A1 (Good Security)" from Moody's Investors Service, Inc.
For more information about HCC, please visit http://www.hcc.com.
Forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made under "safe harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and involve a number of risks and uncertainties. The types of risks and uncertainties which may affect the Company are set forth in its periodic reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.