Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL Buys Shares of 11,508 MetLife, Inc. $MET

Birmingham Capital Management Co. Inc. AL purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 11,508 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $974,000.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the second quarter worth about $4,381,692,000. Pzena Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $941,792,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $639,986,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in MetLife in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $326,904,000. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new position in MetLife in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $293,287,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MetLife Stock Performance

NYSE MET opened at $96.62 on Thursday. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $92.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $82.60. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.20 and a quick ratio of 0.20. MetLife, Inc. has a 1 year low of $67.33 and a 1 year high of $100.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.17 billion, a PE ratio of 18.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.78.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.43 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $13.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.67 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.57% and a return on equity of 23.39%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.02 EPS. Analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.73 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, August 5th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 4.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be given a dividend of $0.5925 per share. This represents a $2.37 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 4th. MetLife’s payout ratio is presently 45.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on MET shares. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. TD Cowen raised their price target on MetLife from $87.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on MetLife from $103.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday. Barclays boosted their price objective on MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on MetLife from $97.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MetLife currently has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.21.

About MetLife

MetLife, Inc is a global provider of insurance, annuities and employee benefit programs. Headquartered in New York City, the company offers a range of risk protection and retirement solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life insurance, group benefits, retirement products such as annuities, and supplemental health products including dental and disability coverage.

In addition to traditional life and group insurance, MetLife provides workplace benefits and voluntary products distributed through employer-sponsored programs.