Man Group plc Cuts Stock Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Man Group plc reduced its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 68.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 282,752 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 613,820 shares during the period. Man Group plc's holdings in MetLife were worth $23,152,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

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

MetLife Stock Down 1.3%

Shares of MetLife stock traded down $1.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $79.27. The company had a trading volume of 758,042 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,392,407. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $65.21 and a 52-week high of $89.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The company has a 50 day moving average of $77.12 and a 200 day moving average of $81.15. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $18.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.83 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be issued a $0.5675 dividend. This is a positive change from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 6th. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.86%. MetLife's payout ratio is presently 36.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MET has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on MetLife from $94.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday. 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. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on MetLife from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 6th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, UBS Group upped their target price on MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $93.08.

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.