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MetLife Expects Q4 Operating Income to Rise (MET)

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MetLife Inc. (NYSE: MET), the New York City-based provider of insurance, annuities and employee benefit programs, today announced that it expects fourth-quarter operating income to rise. However, operating income for the fourth quarter is likely to fall short of Street estimates as a number of natural disasters have put pressure on the insurer’s bottom line.

Catastrophe losses have risen sharply for the insurance industry as a whole this year, with natural disasters in Japan, New Zealand and Australia and the destructive storms in the U.S.


Steven A. Kandarian, Chairman, President and CEO of MetLife, said that the insurance industry faced several challenges during 2011; a volatile macro-economic environment, several natural disasters and an uncertain regulatory environment. Kandarian said that despite the challenges, MetLife’s results for the year reflect the strong underlying fundamentals of the company’s business.

For the fourth-quarter, MetLife expected operating income to come in between $1.16 per share and $1.26 per share. Analysts currently expect the company’s fourth-quarter operating income to come in at $1.28 per share. For the full year, MetLife expects operating income to come in between $4.83 per share and $4.93 per share, compared with Street estimates of $4.38 per share.

MetLife also gave guidance for 2012. The company expects operating income to come in between $4.80 per share $5.20 per share in 2012. Premiums, fees and other revenue are expected to rise 5% in 2012. Analysts expect the company’s operating income to come in at $5.10 per share in 2012.

MetLife shares have risen sharply in pre-market trading today. At last check, the stock was up 3.27% to $32.80. In the last three months, MetLife shares gained 3.22%, compared with a gain of 5.22% for the S&P 500. Year-to-date, the stock has fallen 28.53%, compared with a decline of 1.06% for the S&P 500.

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edliston
Post Written By: Ed Liston

Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing in his yacht.


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Ed Liston

Ed Liston is a senior contributing editor at TheStockMarketWatch.com. An active market watcher and investor, Ed guides an independent team of experienced analysts and writes for multiple stock trader publications. He is widely quoted in various financial publications on the Internet. When Ed is not writing about stocks, investing in stocks, talking about stocks, or otherwise doing something stock related, he likes to go sailing and fishing.

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