5,843 Shares in MetLife, Inc. $MET Bought by Arista Wealth Management LLC

Key Points

• Arista Wealth Management LLC has acquired 5,843 shares of MetLife, valued at approximately $470,000, signaling growing interest in the financial services provider.
• MetLife reported earnings per share (EPS) of $2.02 for the latest quarter, which was $0.30 below analysts' expectations, and experienced a 2.7% decline in year-over-year revenue.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.5675 per share, reflecting a 2.9% yield, with an ex-dividend date set for November 4th.

Arista Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 5,843 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $470,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MET. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in MetLife by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,240 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its position in MetLife by 10.7% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 10,162 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $816,000 after purchasing an additional 984 shares during the period. State of Alaska Department of Revenue raised its position in MetLife by 2.3% in the 1st quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 67,835 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $5,446,000 after purchasing an additional 1,515 shares during the period. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. raised its position in MetLife by 35.0% in the 1st quarter. Johnson Investment Counsel Inc. now owns 14,365 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,153,000 after purchasing an additional 3,726 shares during the period. Finally, Silver Oak Securities Incorporated raised its position in MetLife by 13.4% in the 1st quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 4,288 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $340,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company's stock.

MetLife Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of MET opened at $78.55 on Friday. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $80.20 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.11. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.31, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.21 and a 1-year high of $89.05.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.32 by ($0.30). The company had revenue of $17.34 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.58 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 19.88%. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $2.28 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.5675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 4th. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. MetLife's payout ratio is presently 38.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Wolfe Research upgraded shares of MetLife to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 16th. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of MetLife in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price objective on shares of MetLife from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, August 11th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $95.18.

MetLife Profile

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.

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