MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Sold by University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co.

Key Points

• The University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. reduced its stake in MetLife, Inc. by 18.8%, selling 9,525 shares, resulting in holdings valued at approximately $3.3 million.
• Multiple analysts have upgraded their target prices for MetLife, with UBS Group setting a new target of $98.00, indicating a generally optimistic outlook for the company's stock.
• MetLife announced a quarterly dividend of $0.5675 per share, resulting in an annualized dividend yield of 2.89%, alongside a share repurchase plan to buy back up to $3 billion in shares.

University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. lowered its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 18.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 41,143 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 9,525 shares during the period. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co.'s holdings in MetLife were worth $3,303,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MET. First Horizon Advisors Inc. grew its stake in shares of MetLife by 4.8% during the first quarter. First Horizon Advisors Inc. now owns 422,684 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,937,000 after buying an additional 19,192 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management lifted its stake in MetLife by 52.1% in the first quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 9,355 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $751,000 after acquiring an additional 3,204 shares during the period. Pinnacle Financial Partners Inc purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 1st quarter worth approximately $255,000. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in shares of MetLife by 20.7% in the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 60,785 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $4,735,000 after purchasing an additional 10,414 shares during the period. Finally, Heartland Bank & Trust Co purchased a new stake in MetLife during the first quarter worth $516,000. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased 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. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $97.00 price objective (up from $94.00) on shares of MetLife in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Barclays raised their price target on shares of MetLife from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $96.09.

MetLife Price Performance

NYSE MET traded up $1.40 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $76.19. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,859,333 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,359,577. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.38, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.85. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.21 and a 1-year high of $89.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The company's 50-day moving average is $78.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $79.59.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $18.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.89% and a net margin of 6.08%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.83 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.5675 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.98%. MetLife's payout ratio is currently 36.91%.

MetLife declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board 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.