Pathway Financial Advisers LLC Sells 476 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Pathway Financial Advisers LLC decreased its position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 26,696 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 476 shares during the period. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $1,869,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in MetLife by 3.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 59,622,348 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,418,612,000 after purchasing an additional 1,974,268 shares during the period. Swedbank AB acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 1st quarter worth approximately $131,456,000. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its stake in MetLife by 7,837.0% in the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,129,353 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $79,250,000 after acquiring an additional 1,115,124 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in MetLife by 22.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,396,274 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $378,799,000 after purchasing an additional 988,666 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. lifted its stake in MetLife by 29.7% during the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,120,275 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $157,133,000 after purchasing an additional 485,811 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MetLife stock opened at $82.48 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $75.41 and its 200 day moving average is $73.06. MetLife, Inc. has a one year low of $57.91 and a one year high of $82.99. The firm has a market cap of $58.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.34, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $17.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.57 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.23% and a return on equity of 21.41%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.94 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.68 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 6th were issued a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.64%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 6th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on MET. StockNews.com raised MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $89.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of MetLife from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on MetLife from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $85.23.

MetLife Company 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.