CNO Financial Group, Inc.
For the period ended Sep 30, 2025. Filed Nov 6, 2025.
View on SEC.govAbout this filing
A company's report for each of its first three quarters. The financial statements are not audited. It shows how the business has moved since the last annual report, and what management says changed.
Sep 30, 2025 · Filed Nov 6, 2025
CNO$55.45-1.7%Stored close · as of Nov 6, 2026
What changed in Management’s Discussion and Analysis?
Read the current filingPrevious report: 10-Q
Period ended 2025-06-30; filed 2025-08-06.
0001224608-25-000045
Management's Discussion and Analysis of Consolidated Financial Condition and Results of OperationsCautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking StatementsOverviewGovernmental RegulationCritical Accounting EstimatesCurrent report: 10-Q
Period ended 2025-09-30; filed 2025-11-06.
0001224608-25-000070
Management's Discussion and Analysis of Consolidated Financial Condition and Results of OperationsCautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking StatementsOverviewGovernmental RegulationCritical Accounting EstimatesThe baseline is this issuer’s latest earlier reporting period of the same form that was filed before the current report. A previous 10-Q is a different quarter, not a year-over-year comparison. Amendments are excluded.
Compared 57 previous paragraphs and 61 current paragraphs.
51 unchanged; 6 reworded; 3 added; 0 removed; 0 previous and 1 current paragraphs rearranged.
Tables are not compared: 1 previous and 1 current tables excluded. Dates, whitespace, punctuation and numbering changes are ignored; changes to financial figures remain significant.
A changed paragraph is not evidence that risk increased or decreased. An unchanged paragraph does not establish that risk stayed the same.
Added paragraphs (3)
Current report
In August 2023, the NAIC adopted an interim solution with regard to the treatment of an insurer’s negative interest maintenance reserve (“IMR”) balance, which may occur when a rising interest rate environment causes an insurer’s IMR balance to become negative as a result of bond sales executed at a capital loss. Previous statutory accounting guidance required the non-admittance of negative IMR, which can result in lower reported surplus and RBC ratios. Interpretation 23-01, Net Negative (Disallowed) Interest Maintenance Reserve, the NAIC’s interim statutory accounting guidance which is effective until December 31, 2026, permits an insurer with a company action level RBC ratio greater than 150% (or an authorized control level RBC ratio greater than 300%) to admit negative IMR for an amount up to 10% of its general account capital and surplus, subject to certain restrictions and reporting obligations. The NAIC is developing a long-term solution for the accounting treatment of negative IMR.
Current report
On August 13, 2025, the NAIC adopted an actuarial guideline (AG 55) requiring disclosure related to reserve adequacy for reserves reported as of December 31, 2025 in an insurer’s annual statement. The guideline requires asset adequacy testing for long-duration insurance business that relies heavily on asset returns (i.e., “asset-intensive reinsurance transactions”) within the scope of the guideline that either meet certain size-based thresholds or result in significant reinsurance collectability risk (as determined by the cedent’s appointed actuary). Such asset adequacy testing is to be performed using a cash flow testing methodology. The actuarial guideline requires disclosure by the ceding insurer, meaning that it will not require that additional reserves be posted at the reinsurer level (although the ceding insurer may decide to post reserves). It is important to note that domestic regulators will continue to have the authority to take action on known issues, or issues that may become known as part of such new reporting (including requiring that additional reserves be held). CNO is not yet able to predict the effect, if any, on CNO, if asset adequacy testing were required in connection with reinsurance transactions.
Current report
On August 13, 2025, the NAIC adopted a principle-based reserving (“PBR”) framework for non-variable annuities, similar to VM-20 for life insurance business and VM-21 for variable annuities, located in Section VM-22 of the NAIC Valuation Manual (“VM-22”). The framework for non-variable annuities applies to valuation dates on or after January 1, 2026 and companies have a three-year optional implementation period before the VM-22 PBR requirements become mandatory to all applicable blocks of business. The ultimate financial impact from PBR on CNO is uncertain, but could result in more volatile and less predictable reserve and capital levels for these products.
Reworded paragraphs (6)
Previous wording
In this section, we review the consolidated financial condition of CNO as of June 30, 2025, and its consolidated results of operations for the six months ended June 30, 2025 and 2024, and, where appropriate, factors that may affect future financial performance. Please read this discussion in conjunction with the accompanying consolidated financial statements and notes. Results for interim periods are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for a full year.
Current wording
In this section, we review the consolidated financial condition of CNO as of September 30, 2025, and its consolidated results of operations for the nine months ended September 30, 2025 and 2024, and, where appropriate, factors that may affect future financial performance. Please read this discussion in conjunction with the accompanying consolidated financial statements and notes. Results for interim periods are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for a full year.
Previous wording
Our statements, trend analyses and other information contained in this report and elsewhere (such as in filings by CNO with the SEC, press releases, presentations by CNO or its management or oral statements) relative to markets for CNO's products and trends in CNO's operations or financial results, as well as other statements, contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements typically are identified by the use of terms such as "anticipate," "believe," "plan," "estimate," "expect," "project," "intend," "may," "will," "would," "contemplate," "possible," "attempt," "seek," "should," "could," "goal," "target," "on track," "comfortable with," "optimistic," "guidance," "outlook," "sustainable," "repeatable," "confident in" and similar words, although some forward-looking statements are expressed differently. You should consider statements that contain these words carefully because they describe our expectations, plans, strategies and goals and our beliefs concerning future business conditions, our results of operations, financial position, and our business outlook or they state other "forward-looking" information based on currently available information. The "Risk Factors" section of our 2024 Annual Report on Form 10-K provides examples of risks, uncertainties and events that could cause our actual results to differ materially from the expectations expressed in our forward-looking statements. Assumptions and other important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in our forward-looking statements include, among other things:
Current wording
Our statements, trend analyses and other information contained in this report and elsewhere (such as in filings by CNO with the SEC, press releases, presentations by CNO or its management or oral statements) relative to markets for CNO's products and trends in CNO's operations or financial results, as well as other statements, contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws and the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements typically are identified by the use of terms such as "anticipate," "believe," "plan," "estimate," "expect," "project," "intend," "may," "will," "would," "contemplate," "possible," "attempt," "seek," "should," "could," "goal," "target," "on track," "comfortable with," "optimistic," "guidance," "outlook," "sustainable," "repeatable," "confident in" and similar words, although some forward-looking statements are expressed differently. You should consider statements that contain these words carefully because they describe our expectations, plans, strategies and goals and our beliefs concerning future business conditions, our results of operations, financial position, and our business outlook or they state other "forward-looking" information based on currently available information. The "Risk Factors" section of our 2024 Annual Report on Form 10-K provides examples of risks, uncertainties and events that could cause our actual results to differ materially from the expectations expressed in our forward-looking statements.
Previous wording
•general economic, market and political conditions and uncertainties, including the performance and fluctuations of the financial markets (including the impact of inflation, market volatility, the impact of tariffs, changes in tax laws, changes in commodity prices and fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates) which may affect the value of our investments as well as our ability to raise capital or refinance existing indebtedness and the cost of doing so;
Current wording
•general economic, market and political conditions and uncertainties, including the performance and fluctuations of the financial markets (including the impact of inflation, market volatility, the impact of the continued government shutdown, tariffs, changes in tax laws, changes in commodity prices and fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates) which may affect the value of our investments as well as our ability to raise capital or refinance existing indebtedness and the cost of doing so;
Previous wording
The following summarizes our earnings for the six months ended June 30, 2025 and 2024 (dollars in millions, except per share data):
Current wording
The following summarizes our earnings for the nine months ended September 30, 2025 and 2024 (dollars in millions, except per share data):
Previous wording
(a)Management believes that an analysis of net income applicable to common stock before: (i) net realized investment gains or losses from disposals, impairments and the change in allowance for credit losses, net of taxes; (ii) net change in market value of investments recognized in earnings, net of taxes; (iii) changes in fair value of embedded derivative liabilities and MRBs related to our fixed indexed annuities, net of taxes; (iv) fair value changes related to the agent deferred compensation plan, net of taxes; (v) gains or losses related to material reinsurance transactions, net of taxes; (vi) loss on extinguishment of debt, net of taxes; (vii) changes in the valuation allowance for deferred tax assets and other tax items; (viii) costs related to our three-year project to modernize certain elements of our technology ("TechMod") that are incremental to normal spend and will not recur following implementation, net of taxes; and (ix) other non-operating items including earnings attributable to variable interest entities, net of taxes ("net operating income," a non-GAAP financial measure) is important to evaluate the financial performance of the company, and is a key measure commonly used in the life insurance industry. The income tax expense or benefit allocated to the items included in net non-operating income (loss) represents the current and deferred income tax expense or benefit allocated to the items included in non-operating earnings. Management believes this information provides a better understanding of the business and a more meaningful analysis of results of our insurance product lines. The table above reconciles the non-GAAP measure to the corresponding GAAP measure.
Current wording
(a)Management believes that an analysis of net income applicable to common stock before: (i) net realized investment gains or losses from disposals, impairments and the change in allowance for credit losses, net of taxes; (ii) net change in market value of investments recognized in earnings, net of taxes; (iii) changes in fair value of embedded derivative liabilities and MRBs related to our fixed indexed annuities, net of taxes; (iv) fair value changes related to the agent deferred compensation plan, net of taxes; (v) gains or losses related to material reinsurance transactions, net of taxes; (vi) loss on extinguishment of debt, net of taxes; (vii) changes in the valuation allowance for deferred tax assets and other tax items; (viii) costs related to our three-year project to modernize certain elements of our technology ("TechMod") that are incremental to normal spend and will not recur following implementation, net of taxes; (ix) goodwill and other asset impairment expenses; and (x) other non-operating items including earnings attributable to variable interest entities, net of taxes ("net operating income," a non-GAAP financial measure) is important to evaluate the financial performance of the company, and is a key measure commonly used in the life insurance industry. The income tax expense or benefit allocated to the items included in net non-operating income (loss) represents the current and deferred income tax expense or benefit allocated to the items included in non-operating earnings. Management believes this information provides a better understanding of the business and a more meaningful analysis of results of our insurance product lines. The table above reconciles the non-GAAP measure to the corresponding GAAP measure.
Previous wording
Refer to "Governmental Regulation" in our 2024 Annual Report on Form 10-K and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2025 for information on our insurance and other governmental regulatory matters.
Current wording
Refer to "Governmental Regulation" in our 2024 Annual Report on Form 10-K and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2025 for information on our insurance and other governmental regulatory matters, other than those amended or supplemented here.
Rearranged current paragraphs (1)
Current report — wording carried from elsewhere
Assumptions and other important factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in our forward-looking statements include, among other things: