Royal Bank of Canada Sells 115,699 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Royal Bank of Canada reduced its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,223,158 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 115,699 shares during the quarter. Royal Bank of Canada owned approximately 0.61% of MetLife worth $345,792,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC bought a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Stock Down 0.8%

NYSE MET traded down $0.62 on Tuesday, reaching $80.25. The company had a trading volume of 2,237,647 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,402,829. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $65.21 and a 1-year high of $89.05. The company's fifty day moving average is $77.07 and its 200-day moving average is $81.16.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 business had revenue of $18.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.83 earnings per share. On average, research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be issued a $0.5675 dividend. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.83%. This is a boost from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 6th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio is presently 36.91%.

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have commented on the stock. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of MetLife in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a "market perform" rating and a $97.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $99.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday. Piper Sandler upped their target price on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded shares of MetLife from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday, May 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $93.08.

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.