Brevan Howard Capital Management LP Sells 9,253 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Brevan Howard Capital Management LP cut its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 63.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 5,371 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 9,253 shares during the quarter. Brevan Howard Capital Management LP's holdings in MetLife were worth $440,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MET. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in MetLife in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in MetLife during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts recently issued reports on MET shares. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of MetLife in a research report on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group raised their price objective on MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on MetLife from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MetLife presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $92.69.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MET traded up $0.61 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $81.25. The stock had a trading volume of 2,518,247 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,406,096. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.54 billion, a PE ratio of 13.61, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.21 and a 12 month high of $89.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $77.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.18.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $18.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. MetLife's revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.83 EPS. Analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife announced that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This is an increase from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.79%. MetLife's payout ratio is presently 36.91%.

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.