Canada Pension Plan Investment Board Buys New Shares in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Key Points

• Canada Pension Plan Investment Board purchased 813,865 MetLife shares in the second quarter, valued at approximately $68.9 million, while institutional investors and hedge funds collectively own 94.99% of the company.
• MetLife reported quarterly EPS of $2.43, exceeding the $2.30 consensus estimate, while revenue rose 10.5% year over year. The board also authorized a $3 billion share-repurchase program, covering up to 4.8% of outstanding shares.
• MetLife maintains a quarterly dividend of $0.5925, equivalent to a 2.5% yield, and analysts have a consensus “Buy” rating with an average price target of $102.21.

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought a new position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 813,865 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $68,861,000. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board owned approximately 0.13% of MetLife as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 2nd quarter worth about $26,000. Activest Wealth Management increased its position in MetLife by 205.8% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. Burk Holdings LLC acquired a new position in MetLife during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management bought a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Stock Down 0.3%

MET stock opened at $96.21 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $67.33 and a twelve month high of $100.93. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. The stock's 50 day moving average is $93.17 and its 200-day moving average is $82.74. The firm has a market capitalization of $61.90 billion, a PE ratio of 18.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.78.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $13.52 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 23.39% and a net margin of 4.57%.MetLife's revenue was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.02 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, August 5th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 4.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be paid a $0.5925 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $2.37 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. MetLife's dividend payout ratio is presently 45.40%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on MET. Barclays boosted their price objective on MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Atlantic Securities set a $103.00 price target on shares of MetLife in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of MetLife from $105.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of MetLife from $106.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Evercore reiterated a "mixed" rating on shares of MetLife in a report on Monday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, MetLife presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $102.21.

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.

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