Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV Has $7.10 Million Holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV grew its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 23.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm owned 86,719 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 16,731 shares during the period. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV's holdings in MetLife were worth $7,101,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC bought a new stake in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MET has been the subject of a number of research reports. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on MetLife from $109.00 to $94.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of MetLife from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 9th. Barclays lowered their price target on MetLife from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, UBS Group boosted their target price on MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $92.69.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MET traded down $0.90 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $76.51. 2,731,165 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,392,201. MetLife, Inc. has a 52 week low of $65.21 and a 52 week high of $89.05. The company's 50 day moving average is $77.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $81.40. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.44 billion, a PE ratio of 12.82, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.04). The firm had revenue of $18.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 20.42%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This is an increase from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.97%. MetLife's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.91%.

MetLife announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Company 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.