Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio Decreases Stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio cut its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 1.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 280,580 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,934 shares during the quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio's holdings in MetLife were worth $22,974,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on MET. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on MetLife from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on MetLife from $88.00 to $86.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on MetLife from $94.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, May 19th. Barclays cut their price target on MetLife from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. Finally, Cowen reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of MetLife in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $94.17.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET traded down $1.10 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $77.93. 2,661,718 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,399,316. The stock has a market cap of $52.31 billion, a PE ratio of 13.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $76.70 and its 200-day simple moving average is $81.06. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.21 and a 12 month high of $89.05.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $18.57 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 20.42%. The business's revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.83 EPS. Equities analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company 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 dividend of $0.5675 per share. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.91%. This is a boost from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 6th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.91%.

MetLife declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Company 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.