InvesTrust Cuts Stake in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Key Points

• InvesTrust reduced its stake in MetLife, Inc. by 58.5%, retaining 38,236 shares, which represents approximately 1.2% of its holdings.
• MetLife reported $2.02 EPS in its latest quarterly earnings, missing the consensus estimate of $2.32, and experiencing a 2.7% decline in revenue year-over-year.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.5675, with a current dividend yield of 2.8%.

InvesTrust decreased its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 58.5% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 38,236 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 53,841 shares during the period. MetLife makes up about 1.2% of InvesTrust's holdings, making the stock its 29th biggest holding. InvesTrust's holdings in MetLife were worth $3,075,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. North Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 1st quarter valued at $26,000. Motco boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 105.5% in the 1st quarter. Motco now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 1st quarter valued at $46,000. Finally, American National Bank & Trust boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 128.4% in the 1st quarter. American National Bank & Trust now owns 603 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 339 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company's stock.

MetLife Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE MET opened at $80.86 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.21 and a 12 month high of $89.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.77 billion, a PE ratio of 13.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.87. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $78.24 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.32.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.32 by ($0.30). MetLife had a return on equity of 19.88% and a net margin of 5.83%.The company had revenue of $17.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.58 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.28 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th were issued a $0.5675 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.8%. MetLife's dividend payout ratio is 38.47%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MET shares. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of MetLife in a research report on Friday, August 22nd. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut shares of MetLife from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, May 24th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $95.60.

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.

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