In Kandarian's letter and a separate proxy filing, the insurer said pretax annual savings would be $800 million when netting out "stranded" overhead costs related to a business it is divesting. In February, MetLife's board conducted a "deep dive examination" of the insurer's strategy and goals to boost shareholder returns, Kandarian said. A key part of that strategy is the planned spinoff of Brighthouse Financial, its retail life insurance business, which is awaiting regulatory approval.The company continues to look for ways to reduce the capital it needs to hold and increase its free cash flow, Kandarian said. In his letter, the CEO touched on everything from U.S. tax reform and expectations of an easing regulatory environment to the company's plan to return nearly $4.5 billion of capital to shareholders this year.