MetLife, Inc. $MET Shares Sold by Convergence Investment Partners LLC

Convergence Investment Partners LLC lessened its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 34.2% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 20,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 10,512 shares during the quarter. Convergence Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $1,432,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Activest Wealth Management grew its holdings in MetLife by 205.8% during the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its position in shares of MetLife by 58.9% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 383 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Prosperity Bancshares Inc bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting MetLife

Here are the key news stories impacting MetLife this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan raised its price target on MetLife to $106 from $96 and reiterated an overweight rating, signaling confidence in further share price upside. Benzinga article
• Positive Sentiment: Analysts expect MetLife’s upcoming second-quarter results to show double-digit earnings growth, which could support the stock if results meet or beat expectations. Barchart article
• Neutral Sentiment: Several World Cup and MetLife Stadium headlines kept the MetLife name in the spotlight, but these stories appear tied to the venue rather than MetLife, Inc.’s insurance operations. New York Times article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MET has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Barclays boosted their price objective on MetLife from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. Mizuho lifted their target price on MetLife from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Evercore set a $96.00 price target on MetLife in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on MetLife from $98.00 to $105.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Monday, July 13th. Finally, Atlantic Securities set a $103.00 price objective on MetLife in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MetLife currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $99.29.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MET stock opened at $93.28 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The business has a 50 day moving average of $86.40 and a two-hundred day moving average of $79.26. MetLife, Inc. has a 52 week low of $67.33 and a 52 week high of $94.86. The company has a market cap of $60.02 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.08, a PEG ratio of 0.71 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 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $14.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.49 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 22.60% and a net margin of 4.66%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.96 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be given a $0.5925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $2.37 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 45.93%.

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.