Analyzing MetLife (MET) & Its Peers

MetLife (NYSE:MET) is one of 311 publicly-traded companies in the “Insurance” industry, but how does it compare to its rivals? We will compare MetLife to similar companies based on the strength of its risk, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, earnings, profitability and valuation.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares MetLife and its rivals gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
MetLife	$77.08 billion	$3.38 billion	13.35
MetLife Competitors	$15.26 billion	$1.70 billion	34.35

MetLife has higher revenue and earnings than its rivals. MetLife is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for MetLife and its rivals, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
MetLife	0	1	14	0	2.93
MetLife Competitors	3340	15698	16545	743	2.40

MetLife currently has a consensus price target of $106.62, suggesting a potential upside of 4.10%. As a group, “Insurance” companies have a potential upside of 4.65%. Given MetLife’s rivals higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe MetLife has less favorable growth aspects than its rivals.

Profitability

This table compares MetLife and its rivals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
MetLife	6.21%	24.45%	0.91%
MetLife Competitors	9.08%	-9.84%	4.11%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

95.0% of MetLife shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 55.8% of shares of all “Insurance” companies are owned by institutional investors. 0.4% of MetLife shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 13.5% of shares of all “Insurance” companies are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

MetLife pays an annual dividend of $2.37 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. MetLife pays out 30.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Insurance” companies pay a dividend yield of 2.9% and pay out 31.0% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. MetLife has raised its dividend for 12 consecutive years.

Volatility and Risk

MetLife has a beta of 0.79, suggesting that its stock price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, MetLife’s rivals have a beta of -1.59, suggesting that their average stock price is 259% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

MetLife beats its rivals on 8 of the 15 factors compared.

About MetLife

MetLife, Inc. is a global financial services company best known for providing insurance, employee benefits and retirement-related products. Its offerings include life, dental and disability insurance, annuities, and products and services designed to help individuals and employers plan for financial protection and retirement. The company serves individuals, businesses and institutions in the United States and international markets, including countries in Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East.