MetLife, Inc. (MET)

MetLife, Inc. (MET) is trading near the top of its 52-week range, at 90% of the way from the low to the high, after a steady climb that has carried the stock above its 20-day, 50-day and 200-day averages. The most recent report, on November 4, 2026, was a narrow beat, with adjusted EPS of $2.78 against a $2.77 estimate, yet the shares fell 3.05% in the next session. That reaction matters because it shows the market is already pricing in a good deal of the company's strength, and the stock now needs earnings growth to keep pace with its valuation-free gains.

MetLife reported adjusted EPS of $2.78 on November 4, 2026, against an analyst estimate of $2.77, a beat of 0.36%. The shares nonetheless fell 3.05% in the first session after the report. Over the eight most recent reports, the company beat the EPS estimate four times and missed three times, and the stock was lower in the first session after six of the eight. The pattern suggests investors are looking past headline beats and focusing on guidance, margins and the outlook for growth.

The stock is up 31.84% over six months and 32.33% over one year, and it trades 18.77% above its 200-day SMA and 4.44% above its 50-day SMA. At a trailing P/E of 13.40, MET is 79.5% below the sector median of 16.5, and its price-to-sales ratio of 0.78 is far below the sector median of 3.8. The trailing dividend yield is 2.28%, with an annual dividend of $2.35 per share. Analysts' estimates point to EPS growth of 15.8% this year, so the valuation gap has a fundamental basis, though the company's 1.8 percentage point slower revenue growth, at 9.90%, compared with the sector's 11.7%, keeps the top line a weaker point.

Insiders sold $1.7 million of stock over the last 18 months in a single sale and made no open-market purchases. Sales of this kind are often planned in advance or made to cover taxes on vesting shares, so they carry less weight than purchases would. On the analyst side, 13 of 18 analysts rate the stock buy or strong buy, four hold it and one sells it. In October 2026, TD Cowen, JP Morgan, Wells Fargo, Mizuho, Barclays and UBS each kept their ratings, and 12 of the 18 ratings were buy three months earlier.

The base case is that MET holds its gains while the company keeps delivering modest beats and analysts' forecasts stay intact. Analysts expect EPS to rise 15.8% this fiscal year to $10.22 and a further 9.2% next year to $11.16, which supports the case for steady progress. The median 12-month analyst target is $110.50, with a range from $84.00 to $131.00, and the price sits 21.4% below that median. A move back through the 20-day EMA would suggest the recent advance is losing steam, while a sustained push above the 52-week high of $106.72 would open room toward the upper end of the analyst range. Revenue growth is expected to be flat this year at 0.6%, so the earnings outlook depends more on margins and capital returns than on top-line expansion. Any sharp sell-off in the broader market would test the stock, given its beta of 0.77 against the S&P 500 and a typical daily move of 1.67%.

Support sits first at the 20-day EMA of $100.54, the level a decline would meet first and a short-term gauge of recent buying. Below that is the 50-day SMA at $98.56, which the stock has held as a trend marker during its climb. The 200-day SMA at $86.67 is the longer-term trend line, and a fall to it would mark a major change in the trend. Resistance lies at the 52-week high of $106.72, the nearest level above the price and the level a further rise would meet first. The analysts' median target of $110.50 sits above that high and is the next reference point for the upside.