Evergreen Wealth Solutions LLC Cuts Stake in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Evergreen Wealth Solutions LLC lowered its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 4.4% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,508 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 253 shares during the quarter. Evergreen Wealth Solutions LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $442,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $25,000. North Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Motco grew its position in shares of MetLife by 105.5% during the first quarter. Motco now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American National Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of MetLife by 128.4% during the first quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 603 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $48,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

NYSE:MET opened at $81.4160 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.14 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.80, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.85. MetLife, Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.21 and a 1 year high of $89.05. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.91 and a 200-day simple moving average of $78.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.32 by ($0.30). The company had revenue of $17.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.58 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 19.88%. MetLife’s revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.28 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be paid a $0.5675 dividend. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 5th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 38.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have weighed in on MET shares. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on MetLife from $98.00 to $94.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on MetLife from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen cut MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. UBS Group cut their price target on MetLife from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 7th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on MetLife from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 11th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MetLife currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.60.

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.