Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA Sells 66,555 Shares of MetLife, Inc. $MET

Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA lessened its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 7.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 869,726 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 66,555 shares during the quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA owned 0.13% of MetLife worth $71,639,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Quaker Wealth Management LLC raised its position in MetLife by 198.2% in the second quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 672 shares in the last quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its stake in shares of MetLife by 95.4% in the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 422 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in shares of MetLife by 564.1% in the 3rd quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 361 shares in the last quarter. Finally, MTM Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $37,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. Barclays set a $90.00 price target on MetLife in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 13th. Evercore ISI set a $97.00 price target on shares of MetLife and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of MetLife in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $94.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 8th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.42.

MetLife Stock Down 1.6%

Shares of NYSE:MET opened at $75.54 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market cap of $49.77 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.23, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.76. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $65.21 and a 12 month high of $88.09. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $78.69 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $78.88.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $12.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.64 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 21.00%. MetLife’s quarterly revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.95 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 3rd will be given a $0.5675 dividend. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 3rd. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 42.75%.

About MetLife

MetLife, Inc is a global provider of insurance, annuities and employee benefit programs. Headquartered in New York City, the company offers a range of risk protection and retirement solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life insurance, group benefits, retirement products such as annuities, and supplemental health products including dental and disability coverage.

In addition to traditional life and group insurance, MetLife provides workplace benefits and voluntary products distributed through employer-sponsored programs.