Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC Buys 684 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,329 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 684 shares during the period. Laird Norton Wetherby Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $1,173,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Trading Up 0.8%

Shares of MetLife stock opened at $81.25 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $54.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $77.02 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.18. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $65.21 and a 12-month high of $89.05.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $18.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 20.42%. The company’s revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.83 EPS. Research analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be given a $0.5675 dividend. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.79%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. This is a boost from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.91%.

MetLife announced that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 5.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on MET shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MetLife currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $92.69.

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.