There are about half a million retail investors in Aviva — many the legacy of the mutual Norwich Union, which formed one of the three core businesses — and it has to be said that it has not been the greatest of investments. Aviva has tended to be among the worst rated in the sector because of a weak balance sheet and poor performance and growth.
One could argue that this came to an end with the agreed purchase of Friends Life in 2015, a combination of two insurers that had to result in substantial cost savings and greater capital efficiency and was one of the reasons why the shares were one of this column’s tips for that year.
Even so, last year, after the