Scottish Re seeking new suitors after SCOR rejection

Scottish Re Group Ltd. (NYSE:SCT) is looking for potential buyers or investors after the French reinsurer SCOR Group said it wasn’t interested in acquiring the life reinsurer, A.M. Best says.
“Scottish Re said it is exploring ‘strategic alternatives,’ including a possible sale of the company,” A.M. Best noted in a press release. “Another possibility is a capital infusion from new investors. Citing ongoing negotiations to those ends, the company said it wouldn’t hold an earnings conference call this quarter.
“At least one possible suitor, French reinsurer Scor Group, recently said it wasn’t interested in acquiring Scottish Re.”
Scottish Re Group Ltd. reported a 2006 Q3 loss of US$27.4 million, compared with net income of US$34.4 million for the same period a year ago. Its revenues for the quarter were US$611.3 million, an increase of 8.4%.
Scottish Re has reported a nine-month, 2006 net loss of US$135.2 million, compared with a profit of US$69.4 million for the same period a year ago. Revenues for the period were US$1.8 billion, an increase of 9.9%.
In a statement, Scottish Re noted mortality results were in line with expectations, and the business showed underlying profitability.
“The life reinsurer associated its net loss mostly with one-time costs from financial problems that surfaced over the past few months, as well as unusually high tax costs,” A.M. Best reported.