Corebridge Financial, Inc.

Corebridge reported adjusted pretax operating income of $664 million and EPS of $1.12 in Q2 2026. Excluding VII, EPS increased 14% year over year; run-rate operating EPS was $1.35, up 16% year over year, and adjusted ROE excluding VII was 10.9%, up 90 basis points year over year. Core sources of income increased 5% year over year; fee income increased 15%, spread income increased 4%, and underwriting margin decreased 1%. The company returned $412 million of capital to shareholders in the quarter, including $300 million of share repurchases, ended with over $1.4 billion of holding company liquidity, and said its year-to-date normalized payout ratio was 84%. For guidance, management reaffirmed full-year base spread income of approximately $2.55 billion, said VII returns should remain below target for the rest of the year, expects price compression in Individual Retirement to level off by the end of 2026, and still expects PRT activity to be weighted to the back half of 2026.

Marc Costantini framed the quarter as validation of both the standalone business and the pending Equitable merger. He emphasized strong shareholder support for the deal, called the combined company uniquely positioned to capture retirement, wealth, and protection demand, and said the merger could support $5 billion of earnings, $4 billion of cash generation, and ROE above 15% by 2027 with $500 million of cost synergies. His tone was confident and expansionary, repeatedly pointing to scale, distribution breadth, and customer-service investments as the basis for future growth.

Chris Filiaggi said Q2 was in line with full-year guidance, with $664 million of adjusted pretax operating income and EPS of $1.12. He highlighted that excluding VII, EPS rose 14% year over year, run-rate operating EPS was $1.35, and adjusted ROE excluding VII improved to 10.9%; he also noted the firm’s ongoing cash generation, more than $1.4 billion of holdco liquidity, and $475 million of insurance-company dividends in the quarter. On capital return, he said Corebridge returned $412 million in Q2, kept a year-to-date payout ratio of 84%, and plans approximately $350 million of buybacks in the second half; he also reaffirmed base spread income guidance of about $2.55 billion and said VII should remain below target through year-end.

Analysts focused on retail annuity competition, the durability of the base spread outlook, alternative investment performance, PRT timing, and how the Equitable merger affects capital allocation and institutional growth. Management said retail saw more competitive tension early in the quarter but improved in June and into July, with a rebound expected in Q3; on spreads, they reiterated the $2.55 billion full-year target because some compression should continue as older business rolls off. On alternatives, Lisa Longino said weak PE marks and a large exit backlog kept results below expectations and that the company does not expect to meet long-term VII targets this year; on PRT, management said activity is likely back-half weighted and that current processes are at different stages of maturity.