MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Purchased by Handelsbanken Fonder AB

Handelsbanken Fonder AB lifted its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 13.9% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 107,382 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 13,068 shares during the quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB's holdings in MetLife were worth $8,622,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth $25,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MET has been the topic of several analyst reports. Wall Street Zen cut shares of MetLife from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of MetLife from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Cowen restated a "buy" rating on shares of MetLife in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their target price on MetLife from $94.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $94.17.

MetLife Stock Down 2.2%

MET stock traded down $1.77 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $77.22. The stock had a trading volume of 3,450,695 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,385,518. The business has a 50-day moving average of $76.56 and a two-hundred day moving average of $80.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market cap of $51.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.86. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $65.21 and a 52-week high of $89.05.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 firm had revenue of $18.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th were paid a $0.5675 dividend. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.94%. This is a positive change from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 6th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.91%.

MetLife announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 5.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Company 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.