Groupama Asset Managment Sells 20,323 Shares of MetLife, Inc. $MET

Key Points

• Groupama Asset Management reduced its MetLife stake by 2.8% in the first quarter, selling 20,323 shares and retaining 710,543 shares valued at approximately $50.25 million. Institutional investors collectively own 94.99% of MetLife.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and a $100.50 price target. UBS, Barclays, and TD Cowen recently raised their targets, while Piper Sandler maintained a neutral rating.
• MetLife reported quarterly EPS of $2.42, topping estimates of $2.27, and announced a quarterly dividend of $0.5925 per share, equivalent to an annualized yield of about 2.5%.

Groupama Asset Managment cut its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 2.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 710,543 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 20,323 shares during the period. Groupama Asset Managment owned about 0.11% of MetLife worth $50,250,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Activest Wealth Management increased its position in shares of 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. Sound Income Strategies LLC lifted its holdings in MetLife by 58.9% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 383 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 142 shares in the last quarter. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management acquired a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Prosperity Bancshares Inc bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have recently commented on MET. UBS Group raised their price target on MetLife from $102.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Barclays raised their target price on shares of MetLife from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. TD Cowen lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $87.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 22nd. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of MetLife from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $100.50.

MetLife Price Performance

NYSE:MET opened at $96.21 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $67.33 and a 52-week high of $97.80. The company has a market cap of $61.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.64, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.20. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $88.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $80.13.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $14.18 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.49 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 22.60% and a net margin of 4.66%.The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.96 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.89 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be given a $0.5925 dividend. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.93%.

MetLife Company Profile

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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