Richardson Financial Services Inc. Buys New Stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Richardson Financial Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 3,236 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $214,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MET. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth about $34,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, DT Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. 89.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE MET traded down $0.11 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $68.55. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 2,302,378 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,720,064. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $71.33 and a 200 day moving average of $69.71. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $52.97 and a twelve month high of $74.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.56, a PEG ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 1.12.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.83. The business had revenue of $17.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.73 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.39% and a net margin of 3.50%. The firm’s revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.52 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife declared that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, May 1st that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th were given a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.18%. This is an increase from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 6th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MetLife news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total value of $1,951,290.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 57,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,174,893.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.31% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on MET shares. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on MetLife from $87.00 to $86.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Argus raised their target price on MetLife from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $79.08.

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.