TCW Group Inc. Increases Holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Key Points

• TCW Group Inc. increased its holdings in MetLife by 1.3%, owning 740,168 shares worth approximately $59.4 million as of the end of the first quarter.
• MetLife reported a $1.96 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' estimates by $0.04, but achieved a revenue increase of 15.6% year-over-year.
• The company's board has authorized a $3 billion share buyback program, indicating beliefs that the stock is undervalued.

TCW Group Inc. boosted its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 1.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 740,168 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 9,185 shares during the quarter. TCW Group Inc. owned about 0.11% of MetLife worth $59,428,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. North Capital Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the first quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Motco boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 105.5% in the first quarter. Motco now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $97.00 price target (up from $94.00) on shares of MetLife in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $98.00 price target (down from $99.00) on shares of MetLife in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of MetLife from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on MetLife from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, July 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $96.09.

MetLife Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of MET stock traded up $1.64 on Thursday, hitting $76.43. The company had a trading volume of 2,384,078 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,363,470. The stock's 50-day moving average is $78.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $79.59. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.21 and a twelve month high of $89.05. The firm has a market cap of $51.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.04). MetLife had a net margin of 6.08% and a return on equity of 20.89%. The company had revenue of $18.57 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.06 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.83 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 5th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.91%.

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

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.