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MetLife (MET) Extends Legal Plan to Benefit Federal Families

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MetLife, Inc. (MET - Free Report) recently introduced the Federal Legal plan, available across most U.S. states, for the members of the Federal Family. The plan’s objective is to provide assistance to its members in both the expected and unanticipated legal matters.

Shares of MetLife gained 1.4% on Nov 22.

By choosing the above-mentioned plan, participants and their dependents can have recourse to a robust network of more than 18,000 able attorneys. With swift access to these legal eagles’ competence, Federal Families can thoroughly enjoy a foolproof, diversified service suite covered under the plan. The options comprise assistance on estate planning documents, family and personal matters, home and real estate, monetary matters, care for aging parents and civil lawsuits.

There are no restrictions on the number of network attorney consultations requested by plan members, provided the services are included in the plan coverage. Also, the consultations are devoid of copays and deductibles, and do not require claim submissions.

As a beneficiary of the Federal Legal plan, more than 9 million federal employees, retirees and specific members of the uniformed services are expected to receive financial stability and peace of mind as a bonus.

The expanding reach of the Federal Legal plan seems prudent move by MetLife since it might bolster its customer base. Subsequently, the Group Benefits business, through which the insurer distributes its prepaid legal plans within the United States, is likely to benefit from the rising premiums.

Sustaining the upside observed over the past few years, service contract fees received by MetLife from prepaid legal plans improved 9.9% year over year in the first nine months of 2022. Rising premiums augur well for MetLife since the same contributes a major chunk to the insurers’ top line.

The Group Benefits business of MetLife looks well-poised for growth owing to the insurer’s continuous efforts to launch innovative solutions and services on the back of its exceptional core capabilities and sound financial standing. In September 2022, MET integrated a dental plan-related incentive with its Dental Plan, promising to increase rewards by reducing the out-of-pocket expenses of its employees who opt for regular dental diagnosis.

Shares of MetLife have gained 22.8% in a year against the industry’s decline of 3.5%.

Zacks Investment Research
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Zacks Rank & Key Picks

MetLife currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Some better-ranked stocks in the insurance space are Radian Group Inc. (RDN - Free Report) , MGIC Investment Corporation (MTG - Free Report) and Employers Holdings, Inc. (EIG - Free Report) . While Employer Holdings sports a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), Radian Group and MGIC Investment carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy) at present. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Radian Group’s earnings surpassed estimates in each of the last four quarters, the average surprise being 45.10%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for RDN’s 2022 earnings suggests an improvement of 49.5% from the year-ago reported figure. The consensus mark for RDN’s 2022 earnings has moved 12.7% north in the past 30 days.

The bottom line of MGIC Investment outpaced earnings estimates in each of the trailing four quarters, the average surprise being 36.34%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for MTG’s 2022 earnings suggests an improvement of 49.7%, while the same for revenues suggests growth of 3.8% from the respective year-ago reported figures. The consensus mark for MTG’s 2022 earnings has been revised 5.9% upward in the past seven days.

Employer Holdings’ earnings surpassed estimates in three of the trailing four quarters and missed the mark once, the average beat being 25.31%. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for EIG’s 2022 earnings indicates a rise of 3.4%, while the same for revenues suggests an improvement of 7.3% from the respective prior-year reported numbers. The consensus mark for EIG’s 2022 earnings has moved 14% up in the past 30 days.

The Employer Holdings stock has gained 12.1% in a year. However, shares of Radian Group and MGIC Investment have lost 10.2% and 10.5%, respectively, in the same time frame.

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