COLUMBUS, Ga., Oct. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Aflac Incorporated
today announced that Joseph W. Smith Jr., senior vice president,
investments; and chief investment officer, will retire from Aflac on
December 31, 2006. Smith will be succeeded as chief investment officer by
W. Jeremy "Jerry" Jeffery. Jeffery is currently senior vice president,
investments; and deputy chief investment officer.
Smith, a graduate of the University of Alabama, joined Aflac's
investment department as assistant vice president in June 1985 and was
promoted to vice president in 1986. In 1991, Smith was named senior vice
president; and chief investment officer. He is a chartered financial
analyst and a member of the Association for Investment Management Research.
Prior to joining Aflac last year, Jeffery, a graduate of Yale
University, had a 23-year career with Morgan Stanley, where he focused on
diverse fixed income strategies affecting a wide range of industries.
During his last 10 years at Morgan Stanley, he served as executive
director, Fixed Income Institutional Sales. Jeffery joined Aflac in 2005.
Commenting on the announcement, Aflac President and Chief Financial
Officer Kriss Cloninger said: "It's been a pleasure to have worked with Joe
for many years, and I am grateful for his leadership, dedication and
contributions to Aflac. Joe has effectively led a global investment team
that has produced very strong returns over a long period of time. He leaves
a legacy of an innovative investment approach and a portfolio that is one
of the strongest in our industry. At the same time, I am confident that our
investment success will continue under Jerry's leadership. At Morgan
Stanley, Jerry spent more than a decade working with Aflac's investment
team to identify investments that fit our unique needs. Jerry's extensive
knowledge and experience, in addition to his long-term working relationship
with Aflac, has already benefited the continuity of our investment
strategy."
For 50 years, Aflac products have given policyholders the opportunity
to direct cash where it is needed most when a life-interrupting medical
event causes financial challenges. Aflac is the number one provider of
guaranteed- renewable insurance in the United States and the number one
insurance company in terms of individual insurance policies in force in
Japan. Aflac's insurance products provide protection to more than 40
million people worldwide. Aflac has been included in both in Fortune
magazine's listing of America's Most Admired Companies and Forbes
magazine's Platinum 400 List of America's Best Big Companies for five
consecutive years. In January 2005, Aflac was included in Fortune
magazine's list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For in America for the
seventh consecutive year. Aflac was also included in Fortune magazine's
list of the Top 50 Employers for Minorities in August 2005, and in
September 2005, Aflac Japan was named the Life Insurance Company of the
Year at the Asia Insurance Industry Awards, sponsored by the Asia Insurance
Review. Aflac Incorporated (NYSE: AFL) is a Fortune 500 company listed on
the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol AFL. To find out more about
Aflac, visit aflac.com.
The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a "safe
harbor" to encourage companies to provide prospective information, so long
as those informational statements are identified as forward-looking and are
accompanied by meaningful cautionary statements identifying important
factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those
included in the forward-looking statements. We desire to take advantage of
these provisions. This document contains cautionary statements identifying
important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from
those projected herein, and in any other statements made by company
officials in communications with the financial community and contained in
documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Forward-looking statements are not based on historical information and
relate to future operations, strategies, financial results or other
developments. Furthermore, forward- looking information is subject to
numerous assumptions, risks, and uncertainties. In particular, statements
containing words such as "expect," "anticipate," "believe," "goal,"
"objective," "may," "should," "estimate," "intends," "projects," "will,"
"assumes," "potential," "target," or similar words as well as specific
projections of future results, generally qualify as forward-looking. Aflac
undertakes no obligation to update such forward-looking statements.
We caution readers that the following factors, in addition to other
factors mentioned from time to time could cause actual results to differ
materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements:
legislative and regulatory developments; assessments for insurance company
insolvencies; competitive conditions in the United States and Japan; new
product development and customer response to new products and new marketing
initiatives; ability to attract and retain qualified sales associates;
ability to repatriate profits from Japan; changes in U.S. and/or Japanese
tax laws or accounting requirements; credit and other risks associated with
Aflac's investment activities; significant changes in investment yield
rates; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates; deviations in
actual experience from pricing and reserving assumptions including, but not
limited to, morbidity, mortality, persistency, expenses, and investment
yields; level and outcome of litigation; downgrades in the company's credit
rating; changes in rating agency policies or practices; subsidiary's
ability to pay dividends to parent company; ineffectiveness of hedging
strategies used to minimize the exposure of our shareholders' equity to
foreign currency translation fluctuations; catastrophic events; and general
economic conditions in the United States and Japan.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20041202/CLTH019LOGO )
Analyst and investor contact - Kenneth S. Janke Jr., 800.235.2667
- option 3, FAX: 706.324.6330, or kjanke@aflac.com
Media contact - Laura Kane, 706.596.3493, FAX: 706.320.2288, or
lkane@aflac.com
SOURCE Aflac Incorporated
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Related links:
http://www.aflac.com/
Photo Notes:
NewsCom: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20041202/CLTH019LOGO
AP Archive: http://photoarchive.ap.org PRN Photo Desk
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CONTACT:
Analysts and investors, Kenneth S. Janke Jr.,
+1-800-235-2667 option 3, or fax, +1-706-324-6330, or
kjanke@aflac.com, or Media, Laura Kane, +1-706-596-3493, or fax,
+1-706-320-2288, or lkane@aflac.com
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