MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Stake Trimmed by Commonwealth Equity Services LLC

Commonwealth Equity Services LLC cut its position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 10.0% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 213,079 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 23,743 shares during the quarter. Commonwealth Equity Services LLC's holdings in MetLife were worth $17,108,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Raiffeisen Bank International AG lifted its position in MetLife by 26.9% in the 1st quarter. Raiffeisen Bank International AG now owns 9,421 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $746,000 after buying an additional 1,995 shares in the last quarter. Avalon Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the first quarter worth $80,000. Scotia Capital Inc. raised its holdings in shares of MetLife by 4.1% during the first quarter. Scotia Capital Inc. now owns 57,417 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,610,000 after acquiring an additional 2,285 shares in the last quarter. Liberty Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife during the first quarter valued at $836,000. Finally, Bank of Nova Scotia grew its stake in MetLife by 6.6% in the first quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia now owns 321,889 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,841,000 after purchasing an additional 19,934 shares in the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MetLife Stock Down 2.9%

Shares of MetLife stock opened at $73.78 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $49.53 billion, a PE ratio of 12.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.85. The business's 50 day simple moving average is $78.13 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.17. 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, Inc. has a 52-week low of $65.21 and a 52-week high of $89.05.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.32 by ($0.30). MetLife had a return on equity of 19.72% and a net margin of 5.83%. The business had revenue of $17.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.58 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $2.28 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be given a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 5th. MetLife's payout ratio is 38.47%.

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays increased their price objective on MetLife from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating and set a $98.00 price target (down previously from $99.00) on shares of MetLife in a research note on Monday, July 14th. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and issued a $97.00 price objective (up from $94.00) on shares of MetLife in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price target on MetLife from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $95.40.

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.