State of Alaska Department of Revenue Reduces Stock Holdings in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Key Points

• The State of Alaska Department of Revenue reduced its holdings in MetLife, Inc. by 6.6% during the second quarter, now owning 63,355 shares valued at approximately $5.1 million.
• MetLife reported a missed earnings estimate for the last quarter, with EPS of $2.02 compared to the consensus of $2.32, alongside a year-over-year revenue decline of 2.7%.
• Several analysts have raised their price targets for MetLife, with Jefferies Financial Group increasing theirs from $100 to $103 and maintaining a "buy" rating.

State of Alaska Department of Revenue trimmed its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 6.6% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 63,355 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,480 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue's holdings in MetLife were worth $5,095,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. North Capital Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Motco grew its position in MetLife by 105.5% during the 1st quarter. Motco now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Abound Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 652.3% during the second quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 489 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife during the second quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, WPG Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife during the first quarter valued at $46,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company's stock.

MetLife Trading Up 1.7%

Shares of NYSE:MET opened at $81.61 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.27 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.87. MetLife, Inc. has a 1 year low of $65.21 and a 1 year high of $89.05. The business's 50 day moving average price is $78.67 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.14.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.32 by ($0.30). The company had revenue of $17.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.58 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 19.88%. The business's revenue for the quarter was down 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.28 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th were issued a dividend of $0.5675 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. MetLife's dividend payout ratio is presently 38.47%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MET has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on MetLife from $100.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, August 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on MetLife from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 8th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on MetLife from $98.00 to $94.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 18th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $97.00 price target (up from $94.00) on shares of MetLife in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on MetLife from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, MetLife has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $94.64.

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.

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