Boston Common Asset Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Boston Common Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 10.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 217,593 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 21,051 shares during the quarter. Boston Common Asset Management LLC's holdings in MetLife were worth $17,471,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Barrett & Company Inc. grew its stake in MetLife by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 11,942 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $978,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. Eagle Strategies LLC boosted its stake in MetLife by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC now owns 2,707 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $222,000 after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in MetLife by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 6,044 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $495,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Davis R M Inc. boosted its stake in MetLife by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 3,148 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. boosted its stake in MetLife by 1.4% during the 4th quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 11,295 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $925,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have issued reports on MET. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 6th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of MetLife in a research note on Friday, March 7th. UBS Group lifted their target price on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of MetLife from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, April 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $94.17.

MetLife Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of MET stock traded down $0.34 on Friday, hitting $78.52. 4,359,385 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,404,238. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $76.40 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.71 billion, a PE ratio of 13.15, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.21 and a twelve month high of $89.05.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $18.57 billion during 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%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be issued a $0.5675 dividend. 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 of this dividend is Tuesday, May 6th. MetLife's payout ratio is 36.91%.

MetLife announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock 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 purchase up to 5.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.