United Capital Financial Advisors LLC Acquires New Position in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Key Points

• United Capital Financial Advisors acquired 147,699 MetLife shares worth approximately $12.5 million during the second quarter. Institutional investors collectively own nearly 95% of MetLife’s outstanding stock.
• Analysts remain broadly bullish, with an average “Buy” rating and a consensus price target of $102.21; several firms recently raised their targets to between $97 and $109.
• MetLife exceeded quarterly EPS expectations, reporting $2.43 versus the $2.30 consensus estimate, while announcing a $3 billion share-buyback program and a quarterly dividend of $0.5925 per share.

United Capital Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor bought 147,699 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $12,497,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its holdings in MetLife by 9.0% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,240 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $347,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in MetLife during the 1st quarter worth about $307,000. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in MetLife by 187.6% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 33,378 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,680,000 after purchasing an additional 21,771 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the 2nd quarter valued at about $404,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the second quarter worth about $444,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently weighed in on MET. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, August 19th. Mizuho boosted their price target on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of MetLife from $105.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on MetLife from $97.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $102.21.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MET opened at $96.21 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.20. MetLife, Inc. has a 1 year low of $67.33 and a 1 year high of $100.93. The company's fifty day moving average is $93.17 and its two-hundred day moving average is $82.74.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $13.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $19.67 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.57% and a return on equity of 23.39%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.02 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.73 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.5925 per share. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio is 45.40%.

MetLife declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, August 5th that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 4.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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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