MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Sold by Janus Henderson Group PLC

Janus Henderson Group PLC reduced its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 5.8% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 84,825 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 5,267 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC's holdings in MetLife were worth $6,947,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MET. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MET has been the subject of several research analyst reports. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Cowen reissued a "buy" rating on shares of MetLife in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of MetLife from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $93.08.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MET traded down $2.41 during trading on Wednesday, hitting $77.93. 2,987,768 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,401,173. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a market cap of $52.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.05, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $77.12 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $81.15. 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 posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $18.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 20.42%. MetLife's revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase plan 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 buy up to 5.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be paid a $0.5675 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.91%. This is a boost from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. MetLife's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.91%.

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.