Ritholtz Wealth Management Sells 12,163 Shares of MetLife, Inc. $MET

Key Points

• Ritholtz Wealth Management cut its MetLife stake by 44.5% in the first quarter, selling 12,163 shares and leaving it with 15,147 shares valued at about $1.07 million.
• Institutional ownership remains very high, with several other large investors increasing their positions and 94.99% of MetLife shares held by institutions overall.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on MetLife, with multiple firms raising price targets and the stock carrying a Moderate Buy consensus and average target price of $95.62; the company also recently raised its quarterly dividend to $0.5925.

Ritholtz Wealth Management decreased its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 44.5% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 15,147 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 12,163 shares during the quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management's holdings in MetLife were worth $1,071,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in MetLife by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 4,630,165 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $366,524,000 after acquiring an additional 117,545 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio raised its position in shares of MetLife by 16.6% during the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 326,091 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $25,742,000 after acquiring an additional 46,469 shares during the last quarter. Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC acquired a new position in MetLife in the third quarter valued at about $8,091,000. AIA Group Ltd raised its position in shares of MetLife by 93.5% in the 3rd quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 33,714 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,777,000 after acquiring an additional 16,288 shares during the period. Finally, Korea Investment CORP raised its holdings in MetLife by 12.1% in the third quarter. Korea Investment CORP now owns 666,354 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $54,888,000 after purchasing an additional 71,781 shares during the period. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting MetLife

Here are the key news stories impacting MetLife this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MetLife Stadium is hosting major World Cup activity, including packed matches, celebrity appearances, and heavy media coverage, which keeps the MetLife name in front of a global audience and may support brand awareness. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Local business activity around World Cup events at MetLife Stadium suggests strong demand tied to the venue, reinforcing the stadium’s role as a major event destination and potentially benefiting MetLife’s public profile. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports say fewer people than expected are taking trains and buses to MetLife Stadium for a World Cup match, which may indicate softer-than-hoped transit traffic but does not directly affect MetLife’s insurance business. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Several articles highlight criticism of MetLife Stadium’s turf and field conditions during World Cup play, which could create negative publicity around the MetLife name even though it is tied to the venue rather than the company’s core operations. Article Title

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have issued reports on MET. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on MetLife from $87.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on MetLife from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded MetLife from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of MetLife from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price objective on MetLife from $91.00 to $88.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $95.62.

MetLife Stock Performance

NYSE:MET opened at $86.07 on Monday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $67.33 and a twelve month high of $89.62. The company has a fifty day moving average of $82.10 and a 200-day moving average of $78.08. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.68, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.78.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.15. MetLife had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 22.60%. The business had revenue of $14.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.49 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.96 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 10 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th were paid a $0.5925 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 12th. This represents a $2.37 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. This is a boost from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. MetLife's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.93%.

MetLife Profile

MetLife, Inc is a global provider of insurance, annuities and employee benefit programs. Headquartered in New York City, the company offers a range of risk protection and retirement solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life insurance, group benefits, retirement products such as annuities, and supplemental health products including dental and disability coverage.

In addition to traditional life and group insurance, MetLife provides workplace benefits and voluntary products distributed through employer-sponsored programs.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.