&Partners Sells 329 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

&Partners reduced its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 10.2% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,886 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 329 shares during the quarter. &Partners’ holdings in MetLife were worth $214,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at about $558,460,000. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc bought a new stake in MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at $52,752,000. FMR LLC raised its holdings in MetLife by 54.1% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,126,683 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $133,790,000 after buying an additional 746,643 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its stake in shares of MetLife by 20.9% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,053,851 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $268,090,000 after buying an additional 700,788 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caisse DE Depot ET Placement DU Quebec acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the third quarter valued at about $31,455,000. 89.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Stock Up 1.2 %

MetLife stock opened at $72.12 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The company has a market capitalization of $51.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.12. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $71.21 and a 200-day moving average price of $69.99. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $53.04 and a twelve month high of $74.68.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83. The business had revenue of $17.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.73 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.39% and a net margin of 3.50%. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.52 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.62 EPS for the current year.

MetLife declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th were paid a $0.545 dividend. This is a boost from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 6th. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 74.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MET shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of MetLife from $87.00 to $86.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. StockNews.com raised shares of MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 18th. Finally, Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of MetLife from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, May 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $79.08.

About MetLife

MetLife, Inc, a financial services company, provides insurance, annuities, employee benefits, and asset management services worldwide. It operates through six segments: Retirement and Income Solutions; Group Benefits; Asia; Latin America; Europe, the Middle East and Africa; and MetLife Holdings. The company offers life, dental, group short-and long-term disability, individual disability, pet insurance, accidental death and dismemberment, vision, and accident and health coverages, as well as prepaid legal plans; administrative services-only arrangements to employers; and general and separate account, and synthetic guaranteed interest contracts, as well as private floating rate funding agreements.