MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Sold by Hager Investment Management Services LLC

Hager Investment Management Services LLC reduced its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 7.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,857 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 220 shares during the quarter. Hager Investment Management Services LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $229,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Eagle Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in MetLife by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC now owns 2,707 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $222,000 after buying an additional 123 shares in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. lifted its holdings in MetLife by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 11,295 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $925,000 after buying an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. lifted its holdings in MetLife by 2.5% during the 1st quarter. Stock Yards Bank & Trust Co. now owns 6,463 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $519,000 after buying an additional 159 shares in the last quarter. Unigestion Holding SA lifted its holdings in MetLife by 0.7% during the 1st quarter. Unigestion Holding SA now owns 23,661 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,900,000 after buying an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sonora Investment Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in MetLife by 3.2% during the 1st quarter. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC now owns 5,607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $450,000 after buying an additional 174 shares in the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Trading Up 0.2%

NYSE MET opened at $77.88 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $78.99 and its 200 day moving average price is $79.95. The company has a market capitalization of $52.28 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.85. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.21 and a 12 month high of $89.05.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $18.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 6.08% and a return on equity of 20.89%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.83 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding 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 generally a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be given a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 5th. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 36.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 24th. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $97.00 target price (up from $94.00) on shares of MetLife in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and issued a $98.00 price objective (down from $99.00) on shares of MetLife in a report on Monday. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of MetLife from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.50.

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.