Penn Mutual At a Glance: Rates, Products and Reviews

4.65

Annuity.org Star Rating

National Security Group

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Our Take

Penn Mutual has a stellar track record for financial stability, and the company’s variety of products can be customized with riders and other options, making them a decent consideration for almost any annuity customer.

Pros

• Wide variety of products
• Highly customizable contracts
• Excellent financial strength ratings

Cons

• Annuity customer complaints

Products Offered by Penn Mutual

Penn Mutual offers four different types of annuities: fixed annuities, indexed annuities, variable annuities and immediate annuities.

Penn Mutual’s Fixed Annuities

Penn Mutual offers the Guaranteed Foundation, a fixed annuity with guarantee periods ranging from five to ten years.

With the Guaranteed Foundation annuity, owners can withdraw up to 10% of the annuity’s contract value each year without penalty.

After the first contract year, annuity owners can choose to end their contract’s guarantee period and begin annuitization. This option converts the annuity into a stream of income payments that can last for a certain number of years or for life.

Penn Mutual’s Indexed Annuities

Penn Mutual’s indexed annuity offering is the Premier Foundation. This product has a 10% free withdrawal provision and three surrender charge schedules: five years, eight years and 10 years.

Premier Foundation annuity owners can choose to track the S&P 500^® or the S&P Global Broad Market Index^TM for their indexed crediting option. They can also allocate a portion of their premium to a fixed account.

This indexed annuity comes with optional benefits for an additional cost. The Guaranteed Growth Withdrawal Benefit Rider guarantees annual growth for up to 10 years or until annuitization, even if index performance is zero or below. The Inflation Security Withdrawal Benefit Rider automatically increases the amount used to determine the annuity’s income by up to 6% annually to hedge against inflation.

Penn Mutual sets different rate caps and minimum guaranteed rates for Premier Foundation annuities based on how much is invested in the annuity. Balances of $100,000 or more can enjoy an indexed account cap that’s 50 basis points higher and an additional 20 basis points on the fixed account interest rates. 

Penn Mutual’s Variable Annuities

Strong Foundation is Penn Mutual’s variable annuity, which the company markets as a highly customizable product for tax-deferred growth. This annuity also has the 10% free withdrawal provision that Guaranteed Foundation has.

Owners can choose how to allocate their variable annuity premium among nine different fund categories, ranging from large cap stocks to fixed income and asset allocation funds. You can also keep some of the premium money in a fixed interest account or a dollar cost averaging account to hedge some market risk.

The Strong Foundation annuity features four optional riders, each with different benefits:

• The Guaranteed Growth and Income Benefit Rider promises that the amount used to determine the annuity’s income won’t lose value and will grow at a guaranteed minimum rate.
• The Inflation Protector Withdrawal Benefit Rider automatically increases the amount used to determine the annuity’s income by up to 6% annually to hedge against inflation.
• The Guaranteed Minimum Accumulation Benefit Rider II ensures the contract’s minimum value will be up to 100% of the initial premium amount, even if the annuity’s subaccounts perform poorly.
• The Enhanced Death Benefit Rider protects the annuity’s death benefit value from market drops and allows it to grow with market gains.

All of Penn Mutual’s riders come at an additional cost and may not be available in combination.

Penn Mutual’s Immediate Annuities

The fourth annuity that Penn Mutual offers is a single premium immediate annuity or SPIA. This annuity has a minimum premium of $10,000 and the option to receive income monthly, quarterly, semi-annually or annually.

Penn Mutual’s SPIA also features a wide variety of payout options:

• Period Certain Only
• Single Life Only
• Single Life with Period Certain
• Single Life with Installment Refund
• Joint and Survivor Life
• Joint and Survivor with Period Certain
• Joint and Contingent Life
• Joint and Contingent Life with Period Certain 

Another distinct feature of this SPIA is the cost-of-living adjustment. This benefit, which adds 1% to 5% compounded interest to payments, is available only for the single life only, single life with period certain and period certain only payout options.

I had a client who opted for Penn Mutual’s SPIA product because it offered the highest payout available to him. His objective was to secure the highest guaranteed income possible for a single life, and Penn Mutual fulfilled that requirement. However, the trade-off was the lack of flexibility compared to an FIA alternative, which provided a slightly lower income level. For those seeking high lifetime income, Penn Mutual presents an excellent option to explore.

John Stevenson, CFFOwner and Advisor at Stevenson Retirement Solutions

John Stevenson, a Certified Financial Fiduciary®️, specializes in securing retirements with tax-free accounts. With a focus on guaranteed retirement, he’s ensured none of his clients suffer from market fluctuations. As a renowned educator and podcast host, John empowers thousands weekly, sharing his expertise in minimizing taxes and protecting against financial downturns.
Certified Financial Fiduciary®️
Host of the popular Guaranteed Retirement podcast and YouTube channel
Studied Finance and Business

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About Penn Mutual

Penn Mutual was founded in Philadelphia, Pennylvania in 1847 and began issuing annuities in 1888. As a mutual company, Penn Mutual is owned by their policyholders and focuses on long-term stability and strength.

In 2023, Penn Mutual sold almost $720 million in individual annuity premiums, owning a 0.21% share of the U.S. annuity market, according to data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). Penn Mutual sells insurance and annuities in all 50 states plus the District of Columbia.

Credit Ratings

If you’re thinking of buying an annuity, it’s important to know about credit ratings for annuity providers. These ratings represent the financial strength and stability of the provider, and therefore, how likely the provider is to be able to fulfill its obligations in an annuity contract.

Penn Mutual holds strong financial strength ratings from all the major credit rating agencies. In 2022, the company was recognized by industry leader AM Best for having the longest streak of high ratings in the industry, having maintained a rating of “A” or higher for 95 consecutive years.

Penn Mutual Credit Ratings

What Customers Are Saying About Penn Mutual

According to data collected by the NAIC, Penn Mutual only had one annuity customer complaint reported to state insurance commissions in the last three years. However, the company’s small footprint in the annuity industry could account for the low number of complaints.

The NAIC tracks consumer complaints each state’s insurance commission receives each year. These are used to compile a company’s NAIC Complaint IndexNAIC Complaint IndexDetermined by dividing the company’s share of complaints in the U.S. market by the company’s share of premiums in the U.S. market. The National Complaint Index is always 1.00, so a score of 2.00, for example, is twice as high as expected in the market..

NAIC Complaint Index for Penn Mutual

These numbers indicate that Penn Mutual has a slightly lower number of annuity customer complaints compared to the industry average.

Penn Mutual did not appear in either the 2022 or 2023 editions of the J.D. Power Customer Satisfaction Index Ranking, which measures the overall customer satisfaction of annuity providers.

Penn Mutual Pros & Cons

Penn Mutual has many advantages as an annuity provider, but just like any other company, it may not be the right choice for every consumer. Before purchasing an annuity from any provider, consider the pros and cons of the company and its products.

Pros

• Wide variety of products: Penn Mutual offers four different types of annuities: fixed, indexed, variable and immediate.
• Highly customizable contracts: Many of Penn Mutual’s annuities have customizable options and riders for purchase that can optimize your contract for your needs.
• Excellent financial strength ratings: Penn Mutual holds strong ratings from all the major credit rating agencies, showing a long track record of financial stability.

Cons

• Annuity customer complaints: Penn Mutual scores a 0.85 on the NAIC’s complaint index; generally, we prefer for providers to have a score of 0.5 or less.

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Provider Rating Methodology

Annuity.org created a fact-based methodology to analyze the strength, security and reach of different annuity providers. We assessed companies based on their availability, the number of direct premiums sold, their AM Best Financial Strength Rating and their NAIC Complaint Index score.

Providers received a rating on a five-star scale for each of these categories, with the complaint index and financial strength ratings weighed as the heaviest variables. Then, using a weighted average, each company was assigned an overall star rating.

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Our Rating Panel

The Annuity.org editorial team spoke with several different annuity experts to learn more about what is important to customers when searching for a provider and what factors make a company reliable. While Annuity.org designed the methodology, these experts provided feedback during the process and consulted on what factors we should leverage to best help prospective buyers compare providers.