MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Receives Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” from Analysts

MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) has received a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the stock, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation, eight have assigned a buy recommendation and two have assigned a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $93.4167.

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MET shares. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of MetLife from $101.00 to $93.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, March 3rd. UBS Group boosted their price target on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Weiss Ratings downgraded MetLife from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on MetLife from $97.00 to $93.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Finally, Evercore set a $95.00 target price on MetLife in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th.

Institutional Trading of MetLife

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blue Trust Inc. increased its position in shares of MetLife by 3.6% during the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 3,585 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $295,000 after acquiring an additional 125 shares in the last quarter. Trustmark Bank Trust Department lifted its position in MetLife by 4.6% in the 3rd quarter. Trustmark Bank Trust Department now owns 2,870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $236,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares in the last quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in MetLife by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 3,192 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $263,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares during the period. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC increased its holdings in MetLife by 4.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cornerstone Wealth Group LLC now owns 2,790 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $230,000 after purchasing an additional 130 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC increased its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 131 shares in the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MET stock opened at $70.74 on Friday. 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 cap of $46.12 billion, a PE ratio of 15.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $73.63 and a 200-day moving average of $77.20. MetLife has a one year low of $65.21 and a one year high of $83.85.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.34 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $52.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $31.43 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.38% and a return on equity of 21.81%. MetLife’s quarterly revenue was up 27.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that MetLife will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 3rd. MetLife’s payout ratio is 48.30%.

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.