NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--MetLife, Inc. announced today that its subsidiary, Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Company, has entered into an agreement with Lockheed Martin Corporation (NYSE: LMT) to provide annuity benefits to approximately 13,500 retirees and beneficiaries in Lockheed Martin’s defined benefit (DB) pension plans, representing pension obligations of approximately $1.4 billion.
Lockheed Martin, through its master retirement trust, purchased a group annuity contract from Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Company in December 2020. The transaction will not change the amount or timing of the monthly pension benefit received by the corporation’s retirees and beneficiaries. Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Company, rather than Lockheed Martin, will be responsible for making these monthly payments. No action is needed by retirees or beneficiaries. Lockheed Martin and MetLife will provide details to retired participants and beneficiaries whose ongoing payments will be made by Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Company. This is the second pension risk transfer transaction Lockheed Martin has signed with MetLife. In 2019, MetLife assumed approximately $1.9 billion in pension obligations for approximately 20,000 of the company’s retirees and their beneficiaries.
“With this transaction we are looking forward to continuing our work with Lockheed Martin to provide guaranteed lifetime income for their retirees as well as benefits to the retirees’ spouses and beneficiaries,” said Graham Cox, executive vice president and head of Retirement & Income Solutions at MetLife. “MetLife is a leading pension risk transfer (PRT) provider. By taking on these pension obligations, we will help Lockheed Martin provide its retirees and beneficiaries with financial security.”
The PRT market rebounded in the second half of 2020 and MetLife expects to see this trend continue in 2021. MetLife’s 2020 Pension Risk Transfer Poll found that while most plan sponsors reported that their companies have been broadly impacted by COVID-19, 81% said the pandemic would neither decrease the likelihood of transacting nor cause a delay in transacting.
MetLife, through Metropolitan Life Insurance Company and Metropolitan Tower Life Insurance Company, is a market leader in the pension risk transfer industry, managing benefit payments of approximately $3 billion a year for about 720,000 annuitants. Metropolitan Life Insurance Company issued its first group annuity contract in 1921 to fund a defined benefit plan. MetLife’s Retirement & Income Solutions Customer Solutions Center team has been recognized by J.D. Power for providing "An Outstanding Customer Service Experience" for the Live Phone Channel. MetLife's Retirement & Income Solutions (RIS) business includes U.S. Pensions, Institutional Income Annuities, and Structured Settlements in addition to other institutional products.
About MetLife
MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET), through its subsidiaries and affiliates (“MetLife”), is one of the world’s leading financial services companies, providing insurance, annuities, employee benefits and asset management to help its individual and institutional customers navigate their changing world. Founded in 1868, MetLife has operations in more than 40 markets globally and holds leading positions in the United States, Japan, Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. For more information, visit www.metlife.com.
About Lockheed Martin
Headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland, Lockheed Martin is a global security and aerospace company that employs approximately 114,000 people worldwide and is principally engaged in the research, design, development, manufacturing, integration and sustainment of advanced technology systems, products and services.
Forward-Looking Statements
The forward-looking statements in this news release, such as “looking forward” and “will,” are based on assumptions and expectations that involve risks and uncertainties, including the “Risk Factors” MetLife, Inc. describes in its U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filings. MetLife’s future results could differ, and it has no obligation to correct or update any of these statements.
