Sammons Financial (Midland National and North American) annuities

Overview

Sammons Financial Group is the insurance arm of Sammons Enterprises, a Dallas holding company owned by its employees through an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP). Its annuities are issued by two Iowa-based insurers, Midland National Life Insurance Company and North American Company for Life and Health Insurance. The Sammons Enterprises group ranked #11 among U.S. groups by 2024 individual annuity direct premiums written, according to NAIC market share data, with about $14.14 billion in premiums and a 3.35% market share. Annuities are a much larger business for the group than life insurance, where it ranked 20th; the life side is covered in our Sammons Financial Group profile.

Sammons sells through several channels, each with its own brand. Independent agents working through marketing organizations sell Midland National and North American fixed index annuities. Midland Retirement Distributors and Sammons Retirement Solutions, divisions of Sammons Institutional Group, reach banks, broker-dealers and their financial professionals. Midland Advisory serves fee-based registered investment advisers. You cannot buy directly from the company; the websites point you to an agent finder.

The group is best known for fixed index annuities, which credit interest linked to a market index while protecting the premium from index losses. It has added registered index-linked annuities (RILAs) and fee-based products in recent years.

Annuities it sells

• Fixed index annuities. This is the core of the business. North American calls the FIA its most popular annuity type. Its Charter Plus series (10 and 14) is a bonus annuity that adds an upfront premium bonus, with an optional Enhanced Bonus Rider for an extra charge; the company says bonuses may be recaptured and that bonus products may come with lower caps or participation rates, which can offset the bonus over time. NAC VersaChoice 10 focuses on access to money, with an optional enhanced liquidity benefit rider. On the Midland National side, Summit Journey 10 (launched in 2024) has a built-in guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefit (GLWB) that owners 50 and older can switch on without a waiting period, and Summit Laddered (January 2026) spreads premium automatically across four index strategies with different crediting terms, with a 5- or 7-year surrender charge period chosen at issue.
• Income riders. Both companies say some FIAs carry a built-in or optional GLWB that builds a benefit base separate from the account value. That benefit base is not cash you can withdraw as a lump sum, and built-in income features can come with lower crediting. Capital Income, sold through Midland Advisory, adds a health-activated income multiplier that can double lifetime payments if the owner meets the contract's activities-of-daily-living test; the company notes this is not long-term care insurance.
• Multi-year guaranteed annuities. Both insurers offer MYGAs, which lock a rate for the term you choose at purchase. Midland Advisory lists Oak ADVantage and Oak ADVantage Care MYGAs for advisory accounts.
• RILAs and variable annuities. The LiveWell Dynamic Annuity, issued by Midland National, is a RILA with buffers and floors over one-, three- and six-year terms plus variable subaccounts; it is sold by prospectus through Sammons Financial Network, and the LiveWell variable annuity suite is not available in New York. Oak Elite ADV is a RILA for advisory accounts.
• Income and other products. North American offers single premium immediate annuities for income for life or a set period. Midland Advisory also lists the IndexMax ADV FIA and Constance, a contingent deferred annuity.

Most Sammons fixed and indexed contracts carry surrender charges for years, and Capital Income applies a market value adjustment in most states. Optional rider and strategy charges are deducted from the account value; the companies warn that in some scenarios these charges can exceed the interest credited, which would reduce your premium. See annuity fees, explained.

Ownership and reinsurance

Sammons has no public shareholders: Sammons Enterprises stock was transferred to the ESOP trust in 2010. That removes quarterly earnings pressure, but it also means less public disclosure than a listed insurer such as F&G or Brighthouse. Midland National's and North American's quarterly and annual statutory statements are posted on the Sammons investor relations page.

In its September 3, 2026 rating affirmation, AM Best said the group's risk-adjusted capital "increasingly relies on significant affiliated offshore and onshore reinsurance support." That means some liabilities sit with reinsurers inside the same group, including outside the U.S.; our guide to offshore reinsurance explains why buyers watch that. AM Best also said Sammons is moving its investment management away from Guggenheim Asset Management, a shift it expects to take years. On August 17, 2026 Sammons said it has no affiliation with Guggenheim Capital, Delaware Life or related companies, that its parent holds a non-voting minority interest in Guggenheim Capital it has been selling down for several years, and that Sammons and its people are not under investigation.

Financial strength

AM Best affirmed the A+ (Superior) financial strength rating of Midland National and North American on September 3, 2026, with a stable outlook, citing very strong balance sheet strength and noting lower sales than the prior year amid competition. S&P Global Ratings affirmed its A+ (Strong) rating on June 10, 2026, and Fitch rated both insurers A+ with a stable outlook on June 10, 2026, according to Sammons.

Ratings measure claims-paying ability, not product value. If an insurer fails, state guaranty associations protect annuity values up to set limits that vary by state; check yours with the state guaranty association coverage lookup.

Who it suits

Sammons suits savers who already work with an independent agent, bank adviser or fee-based adviser and want principal protection with index-linked growth or a lifetime income rider from a highly rated, employee-owned group. The range is wide, from simple MYGAs to bonus FIAs and RILAs, so the product you are shown matters more than the brand. Bonus and income-rider designs are among the most complex annuities sold; read the surrender schedule, rider charges and the difference between the benefit base and the cash value before signing, and review best interest rules for annuity sales on what the seller must disclose.

• Strengths: A+ ratings from AM Best, S&P and Fitch (2026); employee ownership with no outside shareholders; products for agents, banks and fee-based advisers; income riders and a health-activated income multiplier on some contracts.
• Weaknesses: Sold only through intermediaries who are often paid by commission; long surrender periods and bonus trade-offs on several FIAs; AM Best notes growing reliance on affiliated offshore reinsurance; limited public financial reporting; no New York company.

How to contact Sammons Financial