Mortgage insurer IPO targets $4 billion valuation

The nation’s largest mortgage insurer is hoping to raise hundreds of millions of dollars in its initial public offering, boosting its value to around $4 billion

The nation’s largest mortgage insurer is hoping to raise between $700 million and $800 million in an initial public offering, according to a Bloomberg report.

United Guaranty, AIG’s mortgage insurer, filed for the IPO in March. If successful, the offering would give United Guaranty a value of about $4 billion, Bloomberg reported, quoting sources “familiar with the matter.”

AIG is faicing pressure to shrink, and is aiming to sell a much as 19.9% of its stake in United Guaranty, before eventually exiting the subsidiary completely.

Activist investors John Paulson and Carl Icahn have pressured AIG chief Peter Hancock to break up the company more extensively. At the same time, Hancock is fielding demands to boost shareholder returns after three unprofitable quarters in a row, Bloomberg reported.

United Guaranty is the largest mortgage insurer in the country by markets share. AIG said in an earnings briefing that the insurer has a book value of about $3.28 billion.