Aviva posts forecast-beating 2015 operating profit of $3.8 bln

LONDON, March 10 (Reuters) - British insurer Aviva (Amsterdam: AW8.AS - news) posted an above-forecast 20 percent rise in 2015 operating profit to 2.7 billion pounds ($3.83 billion) on Thursday and said its integration plans with Friends Life (Other OTC: RSLLF - news) were ahead of schedule.

Aviva (Other OTC: AIVAF - news) bought rival Friends Life last year in a 5.6 billion pound deal, creating a market leader in life insurance.

Analysts in a company-supplied consensus forecast had expected Aviva's operating profit to come in at 2.49 billion pounds.

The life and general insurer said in a trading statement it would achieve its target of 225 million pounds in integration synergies with Friends Life in 2016, one year ahead of schedule, and that it expected 1.2 billion pounds in capital synergies.

The company's combined operating ratio, a key measure of performance in its general insurance business, strengthened to 94.6 percent, against a forecast of 96 percent. A level below 100 percent indicates an underwriting profit.

Aviva said its solvency capital ratio under new European rules for insurers was 180 percent. A ratio of 100 percent shows insurers have sufficient capital to cover underwriting, investment and operational risks.

The company said it would pay a final dividend of 14.05 pence per share and total dividend of 20.8 pence, up 15 percent from 2014 but below a forecast of 21.2 pence. ($1 = 0.7047 pounds) (Reporting by Carolyn Cohn, editing by Sinead Cruise)