We recently published a list of Top 12 Extreme Value Stocks to Invest In Right Now. In this article, we are going to take a look at where MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) stands against other top extreme value stocks to invest in right now.
Are Value Stocks About to Overtake Growth Stocks?
On March 11, Chris Grisanti, MAI Capital Management chief market strategist, joined CNBC for an interview to talk about the recent developments in the market. He noted that the growth stocks tend to go up and down really quickly, what a lot of investors miss while investing is that along with choosing a good company you also have to choose a good entry price. This has been the case for the last 7 years as the valuations have gotten out of control as the growth stocks have largely outperformed value stocks. Grisanti believes that now the market is going back to the point where the value stocks will take over the growth sector.
Grisanti thinks something different is happening in terms of the current market slowdown. He does not think that this downturn is due to over exuberance. Grisanti explained that over the past years the norm has been that the tech stocks get ahead and later pull the market down a bit towards a natural and healthier price correction. This is different as per the chief market strategist, currently there are economically sensitive stocks leading the way down. We have banks, airlines, financials, and the industrials tanking. He pointed out that this is the first time in 3 years that the market is telling the fears of an economic slowdown. Moreover, Grisanti further explained that usually the market can fall on irrational fears however become self fulfilling automatically. However, the current slowdown seems different from the usual scenarios.
Through the first two months of 2025, the market has been mediocre and the Mag Seven were down slightly. However, the banks were up high single digits and the airlines were also up. Now, it has all turned around, tech continues to go down and has been joined by the economically sensitive sectors as well, which is a “Yellow Signal” for the market. Grisanti likes stocks that are trading cheaper than the market and he thinks it is not a bad time to start selecting companies that are cheap and can meet the earnings expectations.
Our Methodology
To curate the list of top 12 extreme value stocks to invest in right now, we used the Finviz stock screener, Seeking Alpha, and Yahoo Finance as our sources. Using the screener we aggregated a list of value stocks trading between a forward P/E of 5 t0 10, with earnings expected to grow in the current and next year. Next, after sorting the list by market capitalization we cross checked the forward P/E of each stock from Seeking Alpha and expected earnings growth from Yahoo Finance. Lastly, we ranked the list in ascending order of the number of hedge fund holders, as of Q4 2024. Please note that the data was recorded on March 12, 2025.
Why are we interested in the stocks that hedge funds pile into? The reason is simple: our research has shown that we can outperform the market by imitating the top stock picks of the best hedge funds. Our quarterly newsletter’s strategy selects 14 small-cap and large-cap stocks every quarter and has returned 373.4% since May 2014, beating its benchmark by 218 percentage points (see more details here).
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MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)
Forward P/E Ratio: 8.31
Earnings Growth This Year: 15.81%
Earnings Growth Next Year: 11.82%
Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 54
MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) is an international financial services company that provides insurance, annuities, employee benefits, and asset management services to individual and institutional clients. The company operates in over 60 countries through several business segments including Group Benefits, Retirement and Income Solutions, Asia, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, and MetLife Holdings segment.
On February 6, Analyst Suneet Kamath from Jefferies reiterated a Buy rating on the stock with a price target of $104. The analyst’s positive outlook for the company is supported by its recovery in Q4 2024 and its commitment to double-digit EPS growth and a 15% to 17% return on equity. Kamath anticipates positive contributions from the Group Benefits and Retirement & Income Solutions segments, noting stable financial metrics like capital position and free cash flow conversion.
During the fiscal fourth quarter of 2024, MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) premiums, fees, and other revenues increased to $14.5 billion, reflecting a 6% increase year-over-year. Moreover, net investment income rose to $5.4 billion, up 1% from Q4 2023, driven by higher variable investment income. It is one of the top extreme-value stocks to invest in right now.
Overall, MET ranks 4th on our list of top extreme value stocks to invest in right now. While we acknowledge the potential of MET as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns and doing so within a shorter time frame. If you are looking for an AI stock that is more promising than MET but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.
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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.
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