Brokerages Set MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) PT at $95.64

Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) have earned an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen analysts that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $95.5833.

MET has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their target price on MetLife from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Mizuho set a $102.00 price target on shares of MetLife in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $101.00 price objective on shares of MetLife and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 15th. Barclays set a $90.00 target price on shares of MetLife in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $95.00 price target on shares of MetLife in a research note on Tuesday.

MetLife Stock Up 1.2%

NYSE MET opened at $78.89 on Friday. MetLife has a twelve month low of $65.21 and a twelve month high of $87.39. The stock has a market cap of $51.98 billion, a PE ratio of 16.79, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.77. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $78.96 and a 200 day simple moving average of $78.81. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.50, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a current ratio of 0.20.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.34 by $0.24. MetLife had a return on equity of 21.81% and a net margin of 4.38%.The firm had revenue of $18.61 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.43 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.08 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 27.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that MetLife will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 3rd will be paid a $0.5675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 3rd. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 48.30%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MetLife

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in MET. Blue Trust Inc. lifted its holdings in MetLife by 3.6% during the 3rd quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,585 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $295,000 after purchasing an additional 125 shares during the last quarter. Trustmark Bank Trust Department increased its holdings in shares of MetLife by 4.6% during the third quarter. Trustmark Bank Trust Department now owns 2,870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $236,000 after buying an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of MetLife by 4.2% in the third quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,192 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $263,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares during the last quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,790 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $230,000 after acquiring an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC grew its position in MetLife by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC now owns 26,953 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,128,000 after acquiring an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

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.