MetLife, Inc. $MET Shares Sold by Swedbank AB

Key Points

• Swedbank AB cut its stake in MetLife by 28.1% in Q4, selling 931,051 shares and retaining 2,385,228 shares (about 0.36%) valued at $188.29 million, while institutional ownership stands near 94.99% and Vanguard increased its position to 72,555,335 shares.
• MetLife beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $2.49 versus $2.34 consensus and reported revenue of $52.44 billion, a 27.6% year-over-year increase.
• The company raised its quarterly dividend to $0.5925 (annualized $2.37, ~3.0% yield; ex-dividend May 12), and analysts maintain a consensus rating of Moderate Buy with a $93.38 target as the stock trades around $79.90 (market cap ~$52.1B, P/E 17).

Swedbank AB lowered its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 28.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,385,228 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 931,051 shares during the quarter. Swedbank AB owned approximately 0.36% of MetLife worth $188,290,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in MetLife by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,555,335 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,727,518,000 after buying an additional 7,805,814 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of MetLife by 105.3% in the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,305,620 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $271,424,000 after acquiring an additional 1,695,563 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Advisors LP raised its position in shares of MetLife by 173.4% during the 3rd quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 1,641,253 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $135,190,000 after acquiring an additional 1,040,894 shares in the last quarter. Man Group plc lifted its stake in MetLife by 325.5% during the second quarter. Man Group plc now owns 1,344,551 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $108,129,000 after purchasing an additional 1,028,554 shares during the last quarter. Finally, PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $81,494,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MetLife stock opened at $79.90 on Wednesday. The firm's fifty day simple moving average is $73.15 and its 200-day simple moving average is $76.51. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $67.33 and a 12 month high of $83.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.00, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.20 and a quick ratio of 0.20.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.49 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.34 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $52.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $31.43 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.38% and a return on equity of 21.81%. MetLife's quarterly revenue was up 27.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.08 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.87 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 12th will be issued a dividend of $0.5925 per share. This is an increase from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 12th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio is 48.30%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have weighed in on MET. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reissued a "moderate buy" rating and set a $87.00 price objective on shares of MetLife in a report on Thursday, March 26th. Bank of America dropped their target price on shares of MetLife from $103.00 to $99.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Evercore set a $96.00 price target on shares of MetLife in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $88.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, Barclays dropped their price objective on MetLife from $92.00 to $89.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, MetLife currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $93.38.

About MetLife

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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