MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Acquired by DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale

DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale lifted its position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 0.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,351,289 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 12,506 shares during the period. DekaBank Deutsche Girozentrale owned about 0.20% of MetLife worth $105,305,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. North Capital Inc. acquired a new position in MetLife in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company's stock.

MetLife Trading Down 1.8%

Shares of MetLife stock traded down $1.47 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $78.19. 2,648,277 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,367,743. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.21 and a twelve month high of $89.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.49 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.67 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $78.87 and a 200 day simple moving average of $80.09. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last announced 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). MetLife had a return on equity of 20.89% and a net margin of 6.08%. The firm had revenue of $18.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.06 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.83 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

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

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be paid a $0.5675 dividend. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 5th. MetLife's payout ratio is 36.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on MET. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on MetLife from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on MetLife from $94.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Barclays upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of MetLife from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MetLife currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $95.33.

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.