MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Stock Holdings Lowered by Cresset Asset Management LLC

Cresset Asset Management LLC trimmed its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 59.6% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 20,923 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 30,869 shares during the period. Cresset Asset Management LLC's holdings in MetLife were worth $1,713,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Transce3nd LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Quarry LP acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MET has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. StockNews.com upgraded shares of MetLife from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of MetLife from $88.00 to $86.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of MetLife from $109.00 to $94.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Cowen reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of MetLife in a report on Friday, March 7th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of MetLife in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, MetLife currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $92.69.

MetLife Stock Down 1.5%

NYSE MET traded down $1.23 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $79.93. 2,561,287 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,406,703. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.21 and a 12 month high of $89.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.66 billion, a PE ratio of 13.39, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a 50 day moving average of $77.02 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.18.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) 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 the consensus estimate of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. The company's quarterly revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.83 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife announced that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Wednesday, April 30th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

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 given a $0.5675 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. This is an increase from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.84%. MetLife's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.91%.

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.