Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Has $8.06 Million Stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 2.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 98,462 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,913 shares during the quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $8,062,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CX Institutional grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 15.9% during the 4th quarter. CX Institutional now owns 68,005 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,568,000 after purchasing an additional 9,337 shares in the last quarter. B. Metzler seel. Sohn & Co. Holding AG bought a new stake in MetLife during the third quarter worth about $2,960,000. Meeder Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in MetLife by 48,101.4% during the third quarter. Meeder Asset Management Inc. now owns 106,043 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $8,746,000 after purchasing an additional 105,823 shares during the period. Segall Bryant & Hamill LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife during the third quarter worth about $1,074,000. Finally, Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at about $259,000. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on MET. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of MetLife in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price target for the company. TD Cowen upped their target price on MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com cut MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $92.58.

MetLife Price Performance

MetLife stock opened at $84.08 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $58.22 billion, a PE ratio of 14.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $83.56 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $81.72. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $67.30 and a 12 month high of $89.05.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 20.42%. Analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.545 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.59%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.52%.

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.