A.M. Best announced Friday that the rating agency has upgraded the financial strength rating of Prime Insurance Company to “A” from “A-,” also revising the outlook on the rating to positive from stable.

Also boosting the long-term issuer credit rating to “a” from “a-,” Best said the upgrades are based on continued excellent underwriting profitability. In addition, strong risk-adjusted capitalization supports Prime’s new growth initiatives in the excess and surplus lines market.

The Best announcement also noted the benefits of reinsurance partnerships for the E&S insurer, including a partnership with RLI Insurance Company via reinsurance and equity ownership.

The positive attributes are partially offset by Prime’s fluctuating premium volume, Best said, noting, however that the fluctuation is typical of an opportunistic E&S underwriting company that looks for under-served areas in the insurance market.

Source: A.M. Best