Russell Investments Group Ltd. Increases Position in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Key Points

• Russell Investments increased its stake in MetLife by 9.3% in Q3, buying 106,538 shares to hold 1,253,098 shares valued at about $103.19 million (≈0.19% of the company).
• Quarterly results: MetLife reported EPS of $2.49 (vs. $2.34 expected) and revenue of $52.44 billion, up 27.6% year-over-year, beating analysts' estimates.
• Dividend and analyst outlook: MetLife declared a quarterly dividend of $0.5675 (annualized $2.27, ~3.2% yield), and the stock carries a consensus "Buy" rating with a target price of $94.18.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 9.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,253,098 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 106,538 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.19% of MetLife worth $103,194,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its position in shares of MetLife by 95.4% during the third quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 422 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC grew its position in shares of MetLife by 564.1% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 425 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in MetLife during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, MTM Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in MetLife during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company's stock.

MetLife Stock Performance

NYSE MET opened at $70.71 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.20 and a quick ratio of 0.20. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.21 and a 1-year high of $85.00. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.02 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $78.66. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.11 billion, a PE ratio of 15.04, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 0.76.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.49 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.34 by $0.15. MetLife had a return on equity of 21.81% and a net margin of 4.38%.The business had revenue of $52.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $31.43 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $2.08 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 27.6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.5675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 3rd. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. MetLife's dividend payout ratio is presently 48.30%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MET has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. Evercore set a $95.00 price target on MetLife in a research note on Tuesday, February 10th. Barclays set a $90.00 price objective on shares of MetLife in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of MetLife from $97.00 to $93.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 25th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $94.18.

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.

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