9,725 Shares in MetLife, Inc. $MET Bought by MQS Management LLC

MQS Management LLC bought a new position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 9,725 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $768,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MET. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in MetLife by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $347,000 after buying an additional 351 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 1st quarter valued at about $307,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 187.6% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 33,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,680,000 after purchasing an additional 21,771 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 2nd quarter valued at about $404,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 2nd quarter valued at about $444,000. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:MET opened at $83.97 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $67.33 and a 12 month high of $85.29. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $75.05 and a 200 day moving average price of $76.67. The company has a market cap of $54.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.27, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.78.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.15. MetLife had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 22.60%. The firm had revenue of $14.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.96 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 12th will be issued a $0.5925 dividend. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 12th. This is a positive change from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. MetLife’s payout ratio is 45.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on MET. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, May 7th. TD Cowen dropped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $88.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MetLife has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.15.

MetLife Company Profile

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.