Northern Trust Corp Buys 57,221 Shares of MetLife, Inc. $MET

Key Points

• Northern Trust Corp increased its stake in MetLife, Inc. by 0.8%, now owning approximately 1.06% of the company with 7,109,423 shares valued at $570.8 million.
• MetLife reported $2.02 earnings per share in its latest quarter, missing estimates by $0.30, and revealed a revenue drop of 2.7% year-over-year.
• The company has authorized a $3.00 billion stock buyback plan, indicating the board's belief that its shares are undervalued.

Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 0.8% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 7,109,423 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 57,221 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 1.06% of MetLife worth $570,816,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth about $25,000. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. North Capital Inc. bought a new position in MetLife in the 1st quarter worth about $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Motco boosted its stake in MetLife by 105.5% in the 1st quarter. Motco now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares in the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MetLife Stock Performance

MetLife stock traded up $2.1760 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $81.4160. The stock had a trading volume of 3,502,666 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,596,835. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $65.21 and a 52-week high of $89.05. The firm's fifty day moving average is $77.91 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.49. The company has a market capitalization of $54.14 billion, a PE ratio of 13.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.85.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.32 by ($0.30). MetLife had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 19.88%. The company had revenue of $17.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.58 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.28 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was down 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 5th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 38.47%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MET has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $92.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of MetLife from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of MetLife from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an "overweight" rating and set a $97.00 target price (up previously from $94.00) on shares of MetLife in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $91.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 7th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $95.60.

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.