MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Sold by Two Sigma Investments LP

Two Sigma Investments LP lowered its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 36.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 312,007 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 176,011 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP's holdings in MetLife were worth $25,547,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MET. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Quarry LP purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MetLife Trading Down 3.0%

Shares of MET stock opened at $77.93 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $52.31 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.05, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. MetLife, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $65.21 and a fifty-two week high of $89.05. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $77.07 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.13.

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 the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $18.57 billion for 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 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 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal 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 given a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This is an increase from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 6th. MetLife's payout ratio is currently 36.91%.

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

Analyst Ratings Changes

MET has been the topic of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective 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. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of MetLife in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group raised their price objective on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays lowered their price objective on MetLife from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, StockNews.com raised MetLife from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $93.08.

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.

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