Mackenzie Financial Corp Boosts Stock Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Mackenzie Financial Corp increased its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 8.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 73,026 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 5,665 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp's holdings in MetLife were worth $5,979,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MET. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new stake in MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at $260,000. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in MetLife by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,240 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $347,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC raised its position in MetLife by 7.4% during the 4th quarter. Exchange Traded Concepts LLC now owns 3,416 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $280,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. raised its position in MetLife by 5.8% during the 4th quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 3,227 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $264,000 after purchasing an additional 176 shares in the last quarter. Finally, PFG Investments LLC raised its position in MetLife by 19.8% during the 4th quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 7,621 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $624,000 after purchasing an additional 1,261 shares in the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Price Performance

NYSE MET traded down $0.34 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $78.52. The company's stock had a trading volume of 4,359,385 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,404,238. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.71 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.21 and a 1-year high of $89.05. 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 company's 50-day moving average is $76.40 and its two-hundred day moving average is $80.99.

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 for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.04). MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. The business had revenue of $18.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.06 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $1.83 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This is a positive change from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. MetLife's payout ratio is 36.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays cut their price target on MetLife from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on MetLife from $88.00 to $86.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. UBS Group lifted their price target on MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on MetLife from $94.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $94.17.

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.