Wellington Management Group LLP Cuts Stake in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Wellington Management Group LLP lessened its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 11.0% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 3,404,495 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 420,501 shares during the quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP owned 0.53% of MetLife worth $288,054,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in MetLife during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $26,000. Activest Wealth Management grew its position in MetLife by 205.8% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Burk Holdings LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife in the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Trading Up 0.1%

MET opened at $96.57 on Monday. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $67.33 and a 12-month high of $100.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.20 and a quick ratio of 0.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.14 billion, a PE ratio of 18.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.78. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $93.39 and its 200 day moving average price is $82.88.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $13.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.57% and a return on equity of 23.39%. The company’s revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.02 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.74 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, August 5th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 4.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be paid a $0.5925 dividend. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 4th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.40%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MET has been the subject of several analyst reports. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of MetLife from $87.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Barclays lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 6th. Wall Street Zen raised shares of MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on MetLife from $103.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their target price on MetLife from $102.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MetLife has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.21.

About MetLife

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.