Is Sammons Financial Group a good annuity company?
Yes, if you are comfortable buying from one of its two operating subsidiaries. Sammons Financial Group itself does not issue contracts; the group's two insurance arms, Midland National and North American, do the actual underwriting, and both carry an A+ (Superior) rating from AM Best and Fitch. The parent is 100% employee owned, with no outside shareholders pushing for short-term profit. Either subsidiary belongs on a shortlist for MYGA or fixed index annuity buyers who want top-tier financial strength, though you should compare the two product lineups since they are not identical.
Sammons Financial Group at a glance
| Legal name | Sammons Financial Group, Inc. |
|---|---|
| Parent company | Sammons Enterprises, Inc., 100% employee-owned (ESOP) |
| Founded | 1938, by Charles Sammons |
| Headquarters | Des Moines, Iowa |
| Ownership | Privately held, no public shareholders or private equity |
| Enterprise assets | More than $143 billion |
| Annuity-writing subsidiaries | Midland National (Midland National Life Insurance Company) and North American (North American Company for Life and Health Insurance) |
| AM Best rating (both subsidiaries) | A+ (Superior) |
| State availability | 49 states and DC through Midland National; all states, with variations, through North American |
Where Sammons Financial Group sits on the AM Best scale
A+ is grade 2 of 13. Most buyers look for A- or better for a long-term contract.
- A++
- A+Sammons Financial Group
- A
- A-
- B++
- B+
- B
- B-
- C++
- C+
- C
- C-
- D
Today's rates for Sammons Financial Group
Rates change often and vary by state, term and deposit size. Get today's numbers for your state, side by side with other top-rated carriers. Free, with no obligation.
Sammons Financial Group is a name most annuity shoppers never see on a contract, yet it stands behind two well-known carriers. Midland National writes business under one roof and North American writes under another, and both trace back to this single parent. If you have ever priced a MYGA or a fixed index annuity at either carrier, this holding company was the entity backing the deal. Knowing how the group fits together explains why both subsidiaries carry such strong ratings.
Who owns Sammons Financial Group?
Sammons Financial Group is the insurance holding company under Sammons Enterprises, Inc., a private business founded in 1938 by Charles Sammons. Sammons Enterprises operates as a 100% employee-owned company through an ESOP, with total assets above $143 billion and roughly $10 billion in yearly revenue across its businesses.
That ownership model sets it apart from most of its competitors. There is no stock traded on any exchange, no public earnings calls, and no private equity sponsor collecting fees. Profits stay inside the enterprise, which supports capital built for decades rather than for the next quarter. In an industry where names like Apollo, Brookfield and KKR have bought up insurers in recent years, an independently owned, employee-held parent is unusual.
Sammons Financial Group financial strength ratings
| Rating agency | Rating | What it means | Applies to |
|---|---|---|---|
| AM Best | A+ | Superior | Midland National and North American |
| S&P Global | A+ | Strong | Midland National and North American |
| Moody's | Not rated | N/A | Neither subsidiary maintains a Moody's rating |
| Fitch | A+ | Strong | Midland National and North American |
Both operating subsidiaries carry the same set of ratings, most recently affirmed by AM Best in August 2025, which is one of the stronger combinations available from any annuity carrier group. Confirm the current rating and date directly with AM Best before you sign anything, since ratings can move.
A rating measures the company's ability to pay claims, not whether a specific product or rate fits your goals.
Your state's guaranty association adds a second layer of protection on top of the rating, up to a state-set limit. See our guide to state guaranty associations for the figure where you live.
The two Sammons annuity companies
Sammons does not sell annuities under its own name. Every contract is issued by one of its two life insurance subsidiaries, and the two are different enough in age, size and product focus that they deserve separate looks.
Midland National Life Insurance Company
Midland National, chartered in 1906 and based in West Des Moines, Iowa, is the larger of the two subsidiaries, with more than $71 billion in total assets and licenses in 49 states plus the District of Columbia. Its MYGA shelf includes the MNL Guarantee Pro and Guarantee Platinum series, and it also runs a wide fixed index annuity lineup that includes the IncomeVantage Pro, built around a guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefit rider. On the regulatory side, Midland National's complaint index with state insurance departments has run well under the industry benchmark, a sign of relatively clean claims and service handling.
See our full Midland National review for product-level detail and current rates.
North American Company for Life and Health Insurance
North American traces back to 1886 in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, and joined the Sammons family of companies in 1996. It carries more than $22 billion in total assets and leans heavily into fixed index annuities with upfront premium bonuses, including the BenefitSolutions and Charter Plus series, alongside the North American Income single premium immediate annuity and the NAC Guarantee Plus MYGA line. Its Comdex composite score, a widely used blend of the major rating agencies, sits in the high 80s, consistent with its A+ AM Best rating.
See our full North American review for product-level detail and current rates.
Who are Sammons companies best for?
MYGA buyers who put financial strength ahead of chasing the single highest rate on the market will find either subsidiary a reasonable fit, since both routinely land near the top of A+ rated rate comparisons. Fixed index annuity buyers who want a built-in income rider should look closely at Midland National's IncomeVantage Pro and North American's BenefitSolutions, which are both designed around guaranteed lifetime withdrawals.
Fee-based advisory clients have an option too. Midland National runs a separate advisory channel built for fee-only registered investment advisors who want an annuity chassis without commission-based pricing. And if you are the type of buyer who weighs ownership structure as heavily as ratings, the ESOP model behind both carriers is worth factoring in alongside the numbers.
Other annuity companies to consider
- Midland National: the larger Sammons subsidiary, broad MYGA and FIA lineup
- North American: bonus-focused FIAs and a income-annuity option
- Athene: the top seller of fixed annuities nationwide, also A+ rated
- Browse all annuity company reviews
Pros and cons
Pros
- A+ rating from AM Best and A+ from Fitch on both operating subsidiaries
- 100% employee-owned through an ESOP, with no public shareholders or private equity involved
- More than $143 billion in enterprise assets behind the group
- Midland National's complaint record with state regulators runs well below the industry norm
- Both subsidiaries have operated for more than 100 years
- Combined product shelf spans MYGAs, fixed index annuities, income SPIAs and living benefit riders
Cons
- You never buy from Sammons directly; your contract is issued by Midland National or North American
- Midland National's most recent J.D. Power customer satisfaction score has trailed the industry average
- Standard MYGA minimum premiums of $20,000 on both carriers run higher than some rate-focused competitors
- The strongest rate bands on some products only open up at $100,000 or more
- You still have to compare two separate product menus rather than one, since Midland National and North American are not run identically
Frequently asked questions
Am I really dealing with Sammons if my policy comes from Midland National?
Functionally, yes, though not on paper. Ownership runs from Sammons Enterprises down through Sammons Financial Group to Midland National and North American. The policy itself, though, names the operating subsidiary as the issuer. That distinction matters because the AM Best rating you are relying on belongs to whichever subsidiary underwrote your contract, not to the parent company.
Why does employee ownership matter for an annuity buyer?
No outside shareholders means no quarterly pressure to hit an earnings target, and no private equity owner shopping for an eventual sale. That has been the setup at Sammons Enterprises since 1938. A number of well-known carriers have changed hands to asset managers in the last decade, which makes an employee-owned parent a genuine outlier. In practice, this kind of structure tends to favor steady, patient pricing over anything designed to juice a quarterly number.
What is the process for purchasing a policy from a Sammons subsidiary?
Neither Midland National nor North American sells to the public directly. Coverage is placed through a licensed, appointed agent. A strategist working with your file can request illustrations from either carrier and line them up against other highly rated companies, so the guaranteed numbers are easy to compare side by side before you pick one.
Written and reviewed by
James Forren Warren
Licensed Retirement Income Strategist · License #20551202
James Forren Warren is a licensed Retirement Income Strategist with Tax Free Wealth Plan. For the past five years he has helped individuals and families turn their savings into retirement income they can count on. He writes and reviews the annuity research on this site and keeps it plain: what a product does, what it costs you, and who it actually fits.
Sources
Educational only, not investment, tax or legal advice. Tax Free Wealth Plan LLC is a licensed insurance agency, not a registered investment adviser or broker-dealer. Annuities are not bank deposits, are not FDIC insured and are not guaranteed by any government agency. Guarantees are backed solely by the claims-paying ability of the issuing insurance company. Features, rates and availability vary by state and change over time; the contract and disclosure documents govern.
