MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Sold by Berkshire Bank

Berkshire Bank lowered its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 3.2% during the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 42,550 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,395 shares during the quarter. MetLife accounts for approximately 0.8% of Berkshire Bank’s holdings, making the stock its 28th largest holding. Berkshire Bank’s holdings in MetLife were worth $3,416,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of MET. Eagle Strategies LLC raised its holdings in shares of MetLife by 4.8% during the fourth quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC now owns 2,707 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $222,000 after buying an additional 123 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in 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 worth $495,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Davis R M Inc. raised its holdings in MetLife by 4.2% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its holdings in MetLife by 1.4% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 11,295 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $925,000 after purchasing an additional 154 shares in the last quarter. Finally, United Community Bank raised its holdings in MetLife by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. United Community Bank now owns 5,571 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $456,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Trading Up 1.3%

NYSE MET opened at $78.37 on Tuesday. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.21 and a twelve month 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 stock has a market cap of $52.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.13, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.86. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $76.94 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $80.45.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.04). MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. The firm had revenue of $18.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.06 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.83 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase plan 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 purchase up to 5.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th were issued a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This is a boost from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.90%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, May 6th. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 36.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on MetLife from $94.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, May 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on MetLife from $88.00 to $86.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of MetLife from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 9th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 6th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.17.

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.