Last week,
ProAssurance Corporation
(
PRA
) announced the culmination of its acquisition of Independent
Nevada Doctors Insurance Exchange (INDIE) - a reciprocal exchange
based in Nevada. Consequently, INDIE will be converted into a
stock insurance company from a reciprocal exchange, and
thereafter operated as a subsidiary of ProAssurance.
Financial and other terms of the deal were not divulged.
However, it has been declared that the subscribing policyholders
of INDIE will receive the purchase consideration within 2
weeks.
The deal was announced in June this year and received the
approval of the board of ProAssurance and the Subscriber Advisory
Committee of INDIE in the same month. Later, it was approved by
INDIE's subscribing policyholders in a special meeting on October
29, 2012, and subsequently by the Nevada Division of Insurance on
November 28, 2012. The approval by the Nevada Division of
Insurance was based on a string of regulatory hearings.
Before the acquisition, INDIE was Nevada's leading medical
professional liability insurer, based on 2011 direct written
premiums, whereas ProAssurance occupied the fourth position in
the state. Thus, following the completion of the deal, the latter
has emerged as the leading writer of medical professional
liability insurance in Nevada by a huge margin, based on 2011
direct written premiums.
The acquisition will not only amplify ProAssurance's medical
professional liability insurance business, but also substantially
boost its operations in Nevada. ProAssurance has been operating
in Nevada since 1993. The company is one of the largest
publicly-traded writers of medical professional liability
insurance in the U.S.
Over the years, ProAssurance has significantly expanded its
geographic footprint through the successful acquisition and
integration of companies. In June 2012, the company announced an
agreement to acquire Medmarc Insurance Group for an estimated
cost of $153.7 million.
Medmarc is one of the leading underwriters of products
liability insurance for medical technology and life sciences in
the U.S. The acquisition is expected to be completed by the end
of 2012, subject to the approval of the regulators as well as
Medmarc's eligible members.
ProAssurance carries a Zacks #2 Rank (Buy). We retain our
long-term Neutral recommendation on the shares. Another operator
in the property and casualty industry -
EMC Insurance Group Inc.
(
EMCI
) - carries a Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy).
EMC INSURANCE (EMCI): Free Stock Analysis
Report
PROASSURANCE CP (PRA): Free Stock Analysis
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