Partnership Assurance operating profit halves as annuity sales fall

LONDON, March 3 (Reuters) - Annuity provider Partnership Assurance said on Tuesday that total operating profits dropped 51 percent to 64 million pounds ($98.48 million) in 2014, dented by a drop in the sales of individual annuities.

Individual annuity sales fell 57 percent to 466 million pounds compared with 2013, Partnership said in a statement, although it said there was a near three-fold increase in bulk annuity sales - taking on the risk of company defined benefit pension schemes - to 247 million pounds.

The operating profit came in slightly above a forecast of 61 million pounds, according to a consensus of analysts supplied by the company.

The company said it would pay a final dividend of 1 pence per share, bringing its total dividend for 2014 to 1.5 pence a share. ($1 = 0.6499 British Pounds) (Reporting by Carolyn Cohn; editing by Simon Jessop)