Moody National Bank Trust Division Has $1.15 Million Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Moody National Bank Trust Division increased its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 3.6% during the 1st quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 14,309 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 502 shares during the period. Moody National Bank Trust Division’s holdings in MetLife were worth $1,149,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 151.4% during the 1st quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 1,584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $127,000 after acquiring an additional 954 shares in the last quarter. Boston Common Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 10.7% during the 1st quarter. Boston Common Asset Management LLC now owns 217,593 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $17,471,000 after acquiring an additional 21,051 shares in the last quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 6.4% during the 1st quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 4,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $367,000 after acquiring an additional 276 shares in the last quarter. Neville Rodie & Shaw Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 1st quarter valued at about $225,000. Finally, Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 6.1% during the 4th quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 270,719 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $22,166,000 after acquiring an additional 15,479 shares in the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE MET opened at $78.52 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.21 and a 1-year high of $89.05. The company has a market cap of $52.71 billion, a PE ratio of 13.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. 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 company has a 50-day moving average of $76.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.00.

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

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be paid a $0.5675 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. This is an increase from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.89%. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 36.91%.

MetLife announced that its board has authorized 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 purchase up to 5.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently weighed in on MET shares. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of MetLife from $88.00 to $86.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, May 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.17.

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.