Prudential Gains on Pension-Risk Transfers; Profit Climbs 22%

For many large companies, the pension promises that were made years ago to employees became a large and distracting headache. For Prudential Financial Inc., these retirement plans are a pathway to growth.

Account values at the retirement unit climbed by $17 billion in 2016 to $386 billion as of Dec. 31, the Newark, New Jersey-based company said Feb. 8 in a statement. That helped Prudential’s fourth-quarter operating profit climb 22 percent to $1.09 billion.

Prudential won retirement-contract deals in the fourth-quarter with United Technologies Corp. and Owens-Illinois Inc. The transactions add to growth at a business that established its dominance ...