Prudential PLC Sells 27,679 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Key Points

• Prudential PLC sold 27,679 shares of MetLife, reducing its stake by 14.4%, now holding a total of 164,306 shares worth approximately $13.2 million.
• MetLife reported a significant earnings miss for the last quarter, with EPS of $2.02, falling short of the expected $2.32, and revenue of $17.34 billion compared to expectations of $18.58 billion.
• The company has initiated a $3 billion share repurchase program, indicating management's belief that the stock may be undervalued.

Prudential PLC cut its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 14.4% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 164,306 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 27,679 shares during the quarter. Prudential PLC's holdings in MetLife were worth $13,192,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in MetLife by 9.0% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,240 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $347,000 after acquiring an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $437,000. Mariner LLC lifted its holdings in MetLife by 2.6% during the 4th quarter. Mariner LLC now owns 148,994 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $12,199,000 after purchasing an additional 3,758 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in MetLife by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 9,454 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $774,000 after purchasing an additional 495 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Canada Post Corp Registered Pension Plan bought a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter worth $804,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts recently commented on the company. Barclays raised their price target on MetLife from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 7th. Wells Fargo & Company reissued an "overweight" rating and set a $97.00 price target (up from $94.00) on shares of MetLife in a research note on Thursday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on MetLife from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Wall Street Zen lowered MetLife from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on MetLife from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday. 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.com, MetLife currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $96.00.

MetLife Stock Performance

MET stock traded down $0.58 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $77.34. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,660,701 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,425,037. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $77.93 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.83. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57. MetLife, Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.21 and a 1 year high of $89.05. The stock has a market cap of $51.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.11, a PEG ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 0.85.

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

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be paid a $0.5675 dividend. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 5th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio is currently 38.47%.

MetLife declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's leadership 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.