AQR Capital Management LLC Has $58.51 Million Stock Holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

AQR Capital Management LLC decreased its position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 21.8% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 714,548 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 199,626 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC owned about 0.10% of MetLife worth $58,507,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of MET. United Asset Strategies Inc. increased its position in shares of MetLife by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 10,933 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $895,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. boosted its stake in MetLife by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 11,942 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $978,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 6,044 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $495,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Davis R M Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 3,148 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $258,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daymark Wealth Partners LLC increased its position in MetLife by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,091 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $417,000 after buying an additional 149 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company's stock.

MetLife Stock Up 0.9 %

Shares of MET traded up $0.70 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $77.12. 743,423 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,727,917. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $77.51 and a 200-day simple moving average of $81.36. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $65.21 and a 12-month high of $89.05. The company has a market cap of $51.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.91, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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 for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.83 EPS. Research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be paid a $0.5675 dividend. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. This is a boost from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. MetLife's payout ratio is presently 36.91%.

MetLife declared that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 5.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently commented on the company. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on MetLife in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $97.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of MetLife from $109.00 to $94.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of MetLife in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Barclays cut their price objective on MetLife from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. Finally, StockNews.com raised MetLife from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Monday. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $92.69.

About MetLife

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.