California Public Employees Retirement System Purchases 24,552 Shares of MetLife, Inc. $MET

Key Points

• CalPERS increased its MetLife stake by 2.4% in the first quarter, buying 24,552 more shares and bringing its total holding to 1,063,550 shares worth about $75.2 million.
• Several other institutional investors also adjusted their positions in MetLife, and the stock remains heavily owned by institutions, with about 94.99% of shares held by institutional investors.
• Analysts are broadly constructive on MetLife: the consensus rating is Moderate Buy, with an average price target of $98.57, while the company also recently beat quarterly EPS estimates and announced a $0.5925 quarterly dividend.

California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 2.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 1,063,550 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 24,552 shares during the quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System owned about 0.16% of MetLife worth $75,214,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Nordea Investment Management AB raised its holdings in shares of MetLife by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,630,165 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $366,524,000 after acquiring an additional 117,545 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 16.6% during the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 326,091 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $25,742,000 after purchasing an additional 46,469 shares in the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 195.8% during the fourth quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 33,260 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,626,000 after purchasing an additional 22,016 shares in the last quarter. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab bought a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter worth approximately $81,494,000. Finally, Diversified Trust Co. raised its stake in MetLife by 276.4% in the fourth quarter. Diversified Trust Co. now owns 31,246 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,467,000 after purchasing an additional 22,945 shares in the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Trending Headlines about MetLife

Here are the key news stories impacting MetLife this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MetLife Stadium is hosting the World Cup final, which keeps the venue in the global spotlight and may highlight the company’s high-profile asset and brand visibility. FIFA insists MetLife Stadium’s pitch is ready for the World Cup final despite criticism
• Positive Sentiment: Heavy media coverage around ticket sales, fan guides, food and drink pricing, and kickoff details suggests strong interest and traffic around the event at MetLife Stadium. How to buy tickets to see Spain in World Cup Final at MetLife
• Neutral Sentiment: News about weather, heat, storms, air quality, and wildfire smoke could affect the event experience, but it does not directly change MetLife’s earnings outlook. World Cup final could be shaped by heat, storms and air quality at MetLife Stadium
• Neutral Sentiment: FIFA’s criticism of the pitch and the “money grab” controversy may create headline risk for the venue, but the impact on MetLife’s stock is likely limited unless the issue affects operations or reputation more broadly. NJ governor slams FIFA’s money grab over sales of MetLife World Cup pitch
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing criticism about the field quality and pitch conditions at MetLife Stadium could dent the venue’s reputation, even though it is unlikely to materially affect MetLife’s insurance business. The MetLife trap: the controversial pitch threatening the final | OneFootball

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MET shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of MetLife from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of MetLife from $93.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Mizuho upped their target price on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, Piper Sandler increased their target price on MetLife from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $98.57.

MetLife Stock Down 0.0%

Shares of NYSE MET opened at $93.99 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.21, a PEG ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.78. MetLife, Inc. has a one year low of $67.33 and a one year high of $94.86. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $85.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $79.07. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.20 and a quick ratio of 0.20.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.15. MetLife had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 22.60%. The company had revenue of $14.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.49 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.96 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be paid a $0.5925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $2.37 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. MetLife's payout ratio is currently 45.93%.

About MetLife

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding MET? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.