MV Capital Management Inc. Raises Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

MV Capital Management Inc. boosted its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 27.8% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,028 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 877 shares during the period. MV Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $330,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in MetLife by 14.8% in the 3rd quarter. Kingsview Wealth Management LLC now owns 3,899 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $322,000 after buying an additional 502 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in MetLife by 59.5% during the third quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 906 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $75,000 after buying an additional 338 shares during the period. D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its position in MetLife by 3.1% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 22,294 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,839,000 after buying an additional 671 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC increased its stake in MetLife by 5.4% in the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 2,209,119 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $182,208,000 after acquiring an additional 112,491 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Glenmede Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in shares of MetLife by 3.0% in the 3rd quarter. Glenmede Trust Co. NA now owns 27,626 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,279,000 after acquiring an additional 809 shares in the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Price Performance

MET opened at $79.19 on Friday. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $83.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $82.83. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $67.30 and a 52-week high of $89.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.95 billion, a PE ratio of 13.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. On average, equities research analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were given a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.52%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of MetLife from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, StockNews.com cut MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $94.58.

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.