Seven Eight Capital LP Makes New $1.12 Million Investment in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Seven Eight Capital LP purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 15,906 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,116,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Forum Financial Management LP boosted its position in MetLife by 1.0% in the 2nd quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 13,729 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $964,000 after buying an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in MetLife by 3.5% in the second quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,217 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $296,000 after acquiring an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co increased its position in MetLife by 8.3% in the second quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co now owns 1,855 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $130,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. CNB Bank raised its holdings in MetLife by 9.3% during the 1st quarter. CNB Bank now owns 1,735 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $129,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Marcum Wealth LLC lifted its position in MetLife by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 3,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET opened at $80.85 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.66 and a 200 day simple moving average of $72.62. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $57.91 and a 52-week high of $81.39. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.49 billion, a PE ratio of 27.78, a P/E/G ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.04.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.15. MetLife had a net margin of 4.23% and a return on equity of 21.41%. The company had revenue of $17.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.94 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.67 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 6th were issued a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 6th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.70%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 74.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. StockNews.com lowered MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 10th. Barclays initiated coverage on MetLife in a research note on Wednesday, September 4th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $91.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on MetLife from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $84.54.

MetLife Profile

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.