Written by StockNews.com

Metlife Inc. (NYSE: MET) late Wednesday posted mixed first quarter earnings results, as profit beat expectations but revenue fell short.

The New York City-based insurance provider reported Q1:

• earnings per share (EPS) of $1.41, which was $0.13 better than the Wall Street consensus estimate of $1.28,
• revenues fell 11.7% from last year to $16.27 billion, however, badly missing analysts’ view for $17.02 billion...
• return on equity (RoE) was 5.0%, down from 12.6% last year [and]
• book value, excluding AOCI other than FCTA, was $50.52 per share, down 5%.

Steven A. Kandarian, Chairman, President and CEO, commented via press release:

“MetLife had strong first quarter operating earnings, driven by volume growth, continued expense discipline and higher fees from improved equity markets.

Our sales for the quarter were up 21% on a post-separation basis, led by our largest segments, the U.S. and Asia.

We continue to execute on our refreshed enterprise strategy to deliver enhanced products, services and experiences for our customers and drive long-term shareholder value creation.”

...Year-to-date, MET had declined -2.60% prior to today’s report, versus a 7.15% rise in the benchmark S&P 500 index during the same period.

MET currently has a StockNews.com POWR Rating of B (Buy) and is ranked #10 of 22 stocks in the Insurance – Life category.