Epoch Investment Partners Inc. Sells 54,695 Shares of MetLife, Inc. $MET

Epoch Investment Partners Inc. lowered its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET – Free Report) by 4.3% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,204,677 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 54,695 shares during the quarter. Epoch Investment Partners Inc.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $85,195,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MET. Strs Ohio boosted its holdings in MetLife by 16.6% in the fourth quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 326,091 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,742,000 after acquiring an additional 46,469 shares during the last quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC raised its stake in MetLife by 195.8% during the fourth quarter. Evergreen Capital Management LLC now owns 33,260 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,626,000 after buying an additional 22,016 shares during the last quarter. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at $81,494,000. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH boosted its position in MetLife by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH now owns 714,193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $56,712,000 after acquiring an additional 14,515 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in MetLife by 2.2% during the 4th quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 622,789 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $49,163,000 after acquiring an additional 13,657 shares during the period. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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MetLife Stock Performance

NYSE MET opened at $94.67 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $60.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.35, a PEG ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $87.27 and a 200 day simple moving average of $79.55. The company has a current ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $67.33 and a 12-month high of $94.86.

MetLife (NYSE:MET – Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $14.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.49 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 22.60%. The business’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.96 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.9 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be given a $0.5925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $2.37 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MET. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on MetLife from $93.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Bank of America decreased their target price on MetLife from $103.00 to $99.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 14th. Mizuho lifted their target price on MetLife from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. UBS Group increased their price target on MetLife from $102.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of MetLife from $97.00 to $103.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, July 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $100.50.

Read Our Latest Stock Analysis on MetLife

About MetLife

(Free Report)

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.

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