Valley Wealth Managers Inc. Has $23 Million Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Key Points

• Valley Wealth Managers Inc. has reduced its holdings in MetLife by 2.1%, now owning 286,487 shares valued at approximately $23 million, representing about 1.7% of its portfolio.
• Analysts have mixed forecasts for MetLife, with price targets ranging from $86.00 to $98.00, and an average rating of "Moderate Buy" reflecting strong institutional interest.
• MetLife recently announced a $3 billion share repurchase program and a quarterly dividend of $0.5675 per share, demonstrating confidence in its stock value.

Valley Wealth Managers Inc. trimmed its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 2.1% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 286,487 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 6,048 shares during the quarter. MetLife comprises about 1.7% of Valley Wealth Managers Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 18th biggest position. Valley Wealth Managers Inc.'s holdings in MetLife were worth $23,002,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $25,000. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife in the fourth quarter worth $26,000. North Capital Inc. bought a new stake in MetLife in the first quarter valued at $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Motco boosted its position in shares of 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 in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MET has been the subject of a number of research reports. UBS Group raised their price objective on MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on MetLife from $99.00 to $98.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 14th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $97.00 price objective (up from $94.00) on shares of MetLife in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $96.09.

MetLife Stock Up 1.0%

MetLife stock opened at $78.53 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $65.21 and a fifty-two week high of $89.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $78.67 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.70. The stock has a market cap of $52.72 billion, a PE ratio of 12.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.85.

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 analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $18.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.89% and a net margin of 6.08%. MetLife's quarterly revenue was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.83 EPS. Research analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be paid a $0.5675 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 5th. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.89%. MetLife's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.91%.

MetLife declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign 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.

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