Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd Makes New Investment in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Dale Q Rice Investment Management Ltd bought a new position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 3,898 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $313,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Transce3nd LLC bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $48,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Stock Up 0.8%

MET stock traded up $0.60 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $79.15. The company had a trading volume of 6,575,429 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,381,111. MetLife, Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.21 and a 1 year high of $89.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55. The company has a market capitalization of $53.14 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.87, a PEG ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.86. The company has a 50 day moving average of $77.37 and a two-hundred day moving average of $80.28.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $18.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.89% and a net margin of 6.08%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.83 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th were given a $0.5675 dividend. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.87%. This is an increase from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 6th. MetLife's payout ratio is currently 36.91%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

MET has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of MetLife from $88.00 to $86.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays cut their price target on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. 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 Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of MetLife in a report on Friday, March 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $94.17.

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.