MetLife, Inc. $MET Stock Sold by Axxcess Wealth Management LLC

Key Points

• Axxcess Wealth Management reduced its MetLife position by 46.7% in the third quarter, selling 13,162 shares and retaining 15,011 shares valued at approximately $1.41 million.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish on MetLife, with 13 Buy ratings and two Holds, producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $105.44.
• MetLife reported quarterly earnings of $2.43 per share, exceeding estimates, and authorized a $3 billion share-repurchase program. The company also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.5925 per share, equivalent to a 2.4% annual yield.

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC cut its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 46.7% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 15,011 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 13,162 shares during the period. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC's holdings in MetLife were worth $1,413,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MET. Nykredit A S bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 2nd quarter valued at about $178,638,000. Two Sigma Securities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $4,204,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of MetLife by 20.1% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 74,002 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $6,261,000 after acquiring an additional 12,378 shares during the period. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp bought a new position in MetLife during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,683,000. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia bought a new position in MetLife during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $14,182,000. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have commented on MET shares. Mizuho lowered their target price on shares of MetLife from $112.00 to $109.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $103.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $108.00 to $110.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, October 15th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $105.00 to $110.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on MetLife from $110.00 to $114.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, MetLife presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $105.44.

MetLife Trading Down 4.5%

NYSE MET opened at $98.86 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $63.61 billion, a PE ratio of 18.94, a PEG ratio of 0.98 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $67.33 and a 12 month high of $103.65. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $97.27 and a 200-day moving average of $89.81.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.43 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $13.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.57% and a return on equity of 23.39%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.02 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.94 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife announced that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, August 5th that allows the company to buy back $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 4.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.5925 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 3rd. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. MetLife's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.40%.

MetLife Profile

MetLife, Inc NYSE: MET is a global financial services company that provides insurance, retirement, and employee benefits solutions to individuals, employers, and institutions. Its offerings include life insurance, dental and vision coverage, accident and disability insurance, annuities, retirement savings products, and related financial services.

Through its institutional and workplace businesses, MetLife helps employers provide benefits and retirement programs to their employees. The company also serves individual customers with protection and income products.

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