MetLife NYSE: MET reported second-quarter 2026 adjusted earnings of approximately $1.6 billion, or $2.43 per share, up 15% from a year earlier. Adjusted earnings per share increased 20%, while adjusted return on equity reached 17%, the top end of the company’s 15% to 17% annual target range.
President and Chief Executive Officer Michel Khalaf said the results reflected the execution of MetLife’s “New Frontier” strategy, which combines capital-light businesses such as Group Benefits, international operations and asset management with capital-driven retirement and spread-based operations.
“Adjusted earnings increased in every business segment compared with a year ago,” Khalaf said, citing strong underwriting, broad volume growth and continued capital returns to shareholders.
Capital Returns and Expense Management
MetLife repurchased about $700 million of common shares during the quarter and returned more than $2.4 billion to shareholders through July through buybacks and common dividends. The company also announced a new $3 billion share repurchase authorization.
Holding-company cash and liquid assets totaled $3.4 billion at June 30, within MetLife’s stated target buffer of $3 billion to $4 billion. Chief Financial Officer and Head of MetLife Investment Management John McCallion said the company returned approximately $1.1 billion to shareholders in the second quarter, including the share repurchases, and bought an additional roughly $225 million of shares in July.
The direct expense ratio was 12.1% in the quarter, compared with 11.7% in the year-ago quarter and for full-year 2025. The ratio included an approximately 50-basis-point impact from the addition of PineBridge Investments, which has a structurally higher expense profile. Management said it remains on track to beat its 12.1% full-year 2026 target through expense discipline and productivity initiatives.
Khalaf said artificial intelligence is becoming a structural advantage for the company because of the volume of policies, customer interactions and claims MetLife handles. He said the company monitors AI-related investment and usage costs under the same return standards applied to other investments and expenses.
Group Benefits Leads Segment Growth
Group Benefits generated adjusted earnings of $503 million, up 25% year over year, supported by favorable life underwriting and volume growth. The group life mortality ratio was 79%, better than the company’s 2026 target range of 83% to 88%, reflecting improved mortality trends among the working-age population.
Ramy Tadros, president of MetLife’s U.S. business, said the quarter included about two points of mortality favorability from prior-period development and lower-than-expected claim severity. He said the company expects those factors to normalize during the remainder of the year, with early indications evident in July results.
Tadros said any longer-term normalization of Group Life margins would occur gradually because the business has a three- to five-year renewal cycle. Year-to-date Group Benefits sales rose 9%, including an 11% increase in regional business. Adjusted premiums, fees and other revenues increased 4% excluding participating contracts.
Non-Medical Health’s interest-adjusted benefit ratio was 73.9%, within its 70% to 75% annual target range and 190 basis points better sequentially. Tadros said paid family and medical leave claims followed the anticipated pattern of higher claims early in a program’s rollout before moderating. He also cited favorable disability results, driven by experience and investments in data analytics and AI intended to improve recoveries.
Retirement, International Operations and Asset Management
Retirement & Income Solutions, or RIS, recorded adjusted earnings of $377 million, up 2% from the prior year. Adjusted premiums, fees and other revenues excluding pension risk transfers increased 19%, led by U.K. longevity reinsurance and structured settlement sales.
RIS reported a total investment spread of 97 basis points, below management’s 100- to 120-basis-point guidance range because of weaker private-equity returns in variable investment income. Core spread excluding variable investment income was 100 basis points, up 5 basis points sequentially. McCallion said MetLife expects its core RIS spread to remain within a 95- to 100-basis-point range and estimated third-quarter results could be near the midpoint because of real estate income seasonality.
Management described the U.S. pension risk transfer market as lighter in the first half, particularly for jumbo transactions, but said it sees a stronger opportunity pipeline for the second half. Tadros said MetLife sold nearly $14 billion of pension risk transfers in 2025, including $12 billion in the fourth quarter, illustrating the market’s uneven timing. He added that MetLife wrote more than $1 billion of U.K. funded reinsurance year to date.
Asia adjusted earnings rose 21% on a reported basis and 25% on a constant-currency basis to $420 million. Sales increased 17% on a constant-currency basis, supported by Korea and product launches. In Japan, sales rose 2% from a strong year-earlier comparison and 13% sequentially, while accident and health sales grew nearly 90% on a constant-currency basis following a medical product launch.
Latin America posted a quarterly record of $268 million in adjusted earnings, up 15% reported and 4% on a constant-currency basis. Sales rose 9% on the same basis, with growth led by Brazil, Mexico and Chile. EMEA adjusted earnings increased 8%, or 11% on a constant-currency basis, to $108 million, while sales rose 15% on a constant-currency basis.
MetLife Investment Management, or MIM, generated adjusted earnings of $57 million, up 6%, as PineBridge integration and expense management contributed to results. Total assets under management rose $12 billion sequentially to approximately $748 billion at June 30, including a $7 billion increase in institutional client assets. McCallion said MIM remains positioned to deliver full-year adjusted earnings within its $240 million to $280 million guidance range, though likely near the low end.
M&A and Investment Positioning
During the question-and-answer session, Khalaf said MetLife’s approach to acquisitions has not changed. He identified asset management and Group Benefits as the areas most likely to be considered for acquisitions, emphasizing complementary capabilities and adjacencies rather than transformational transactions.
McCallion said MetLife expects its private-equity allocation to decline modestly over time as distributions from its seasoned portfolio outpace contributions, though the company will continue investing in the asset class. He said higher interest rates can provide positive momentum over time, but portfolio changes are incremental and governed by asset-liability management and risk considerations.
About MetLife (NYSE:MET)
MetLife, Inc is a global provider of insurance, annuities and employee benefit programs. Headquartered in New York City, the company offers a range of risk protection and retirement solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life insurance, group benefits, retirement products such as annuities, and supplemental health products including dental and disability coverage.
In addition to traditional life and group insurance, MetLife provides workplace benefits and voluntary products distributed through employer-sponsored programs.
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