New York State Common Retirement Fund Cuts Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

New York State Common Retirement Fund reduced its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 12.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 927,409 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 135,640 shares during the quarter. New York State Common Retirement Fund owned about 0.13% of MetLife worth $61,330,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. bought a new position in shares of MetLife in the third quarter worth $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife in the third quarter worth $36,000. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Trading Up 0.7 %

Shares of NYSE MET traded up $0.50 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $72.72. 2,060,451 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,514,421. The business has a 50 day moving average of $71.28 and a two-hundred day moving average of $67.02. The stock has a market capitalization of $52.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 39.74, a PEG ratio of 0.54 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. MetLife, Inc. has a 1 year low of $48.95 and a 1 year high of $74.68.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). The business had revenue of $18.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.07 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 2.36%. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be paid a $0.545 dividend. This is an increase from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 6th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio is currently 113.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Piper Sandler increased their price target on MetLife from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on MetLife from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group cut their price objective on MetLife from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Monday, February 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $79.23.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.90, for a total value of $289,469.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 146,981 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,567,933.90. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other MetLife news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total value of $1,951,290.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,768 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,174,893.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.90, for a total value of $289,469.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 146,981 shares in the company, valued at $10,567,933.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company's stock.

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.