Metlife Inc (MET) · Nov 4, 2026 · Earnings
Beat — Adjusted EPS $2.78 vs ~$2.77 consensus
MetLife earnings slightly beat consensus, with record adjusted EPS and revenue growth across its insurance and asset-management businesses, though RIS and Latin America were uneven.
MetLife is in year two of its five-year New Frontier strategy, centered on group benefits, retirement solutions, asset management and higher-growth international markets; the strategy targets double-digit adjusted EPS growth and 15–17% adjusted ROE over 2025–2029.
The quarter modestly beat the market’s bar, but this is an execution update—not a rewritten story. Adjusted EPS of $2.78 was just above the published consensus of roughly $2.77, while adjusted EPS excluding notable items reached $2.85. That is a narrow beat, not a surprise of a scale that changes how the company is viewed.
| Q3 2026 | Q3 2025 | Consensus | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adjusted EPS (Earnings Release) | $2.78 (+17%) | $2.37 | ~$2.77 |
| Adjusted EPS ex. notable items (Earnings Release) | $2.85 (+22%) | $2.34 | |
| Adjusted PFOs ex. PRT (Third Quarter 2026 Summary) | $13.525B (+8%) | $12.471B | |
| Adjusted ROE ex. notable items (Third Quarter 2026 Summary) | 19.6% | 16.7% | |
| Direct expense ratio ex. notable items and PRT (Third Quarter 2026 Summary) | 11.9% | 11.6% |
Underlying operating momentum was genuinely broad. Adjusted premiums, fees and other revenues excluding pension risk transfers rose 8%, with growth in all six segments; Group Benefits earnings increased 14% excluding notable items, Asia increased 17%, EMEA increased 30%, and MetLife Investment Management grew 9% while assets under management rose 14%. The filing says, “Revenue rose in every business segment,” and adjusted earnings were “driven by higher VII, broad-based volume growth, and favorable underwriting.”
The mix is better than the headline, but not uniformly clean. Retirement and Income Solutions reported a 6% earnings decline because of a $65 million actuarial-review charge, though earnings excluding that item rose 12% and PFOs excluding pension risk transfers jumped 33%. Latin America’s reported earnings surged 45%, but excluding notable items they rose only 3% on a reported basis and fell 5% in constant currency. Asia also saw sales decline 6% in constant currency despite stronger earnings.
Investment conditions did much of the lifting, while cost execution was less impressive. Adjusted net investment income rose 10%, with variable investment income up 49% to $720 million, and higher U.S. rates generated $551 million of after-tax derivative gains. Those gains support the quarter but are less repeatable than underwriting and fee growth. Meanwhile, the direct expense ratio worsened to 11.9% from 11.6%, even though management said it remains on track for its annual target.
Capital generation remains supportive, but the reported balance-sheet picture is mixed. MetLife repurchased $650 million of shares in the quarter and paid $380 million of common dividends, while adjusted book value per share rose 5% to $59.41. However, reported book value per share fell 22% to $30.73, reflecting market-driven accounting effects rather than a comparable deterioration in adjusted capital. The company also reaffirmed that it is on track for its free-cash-flow and expense-ratio targets rather than raising them.
Bottom line: MetLife delivered a narrow earnings beat with broad revenue growth and strong adjusted returns, reinforcing—not transforming—the New Frontier story. The main caveat is that investment income and rate-sensitive derivative gains amplified the quarter, while expense performance and a few major segments remained uneven.
Q3 earnings call, November 5, 2026
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