Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp Sells 2,065 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp reduced its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 3.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 65,380 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,065 shares during the quarter. Peapack Gladstone Financial Corp’s holdings in MetLife were worth $5,353,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MET. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of MetLife by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,931,536 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $973,901,000 after buying an additional 158,107 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at about $730,716,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 109.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,826,658 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $722,727,000 after purchasing an additional 4,606,748 shares in the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC increased its position in shares of MetLife by 43.7% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 5,663,177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $463,701,000 after purchasing an additional 1,723,461 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB raised its stake in MetLife by 16.8% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,238,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $347,735,000 after purchasing an additional 608,224 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Trading Down 9.5 %

NYSE:MET opened at $68.71 on Monday. The firm has a market capitalization of $46.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.89. MetLife, Inc. has a 52 week low of $67.10 and a 52 week high of $89.05. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a fifty day moving average of $82.41 and a 200 day moving average of $82.96.

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

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 4th were issued a dividend of $0.545 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is presently 36.52%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on MET shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Barclays cut their price objective on MetLife from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on MetLife in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their target price on MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.85.

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.