Benjamin Edwards Inc. Sells 216 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Benjamin Edwards Inc. lessened its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 3.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 5,698 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 216 shares during the quarter. Benjamin Edwards Inc.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $377,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MET. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. bought a new stake in MetLife during the third quarter worth about $28,000. Planned Solutions Inc. bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. 89.81% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MET traded up $0.28 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $70.52. The stock had a trading volume of 2,881,314 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,164,878. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $48.95 and a 12 month high of $74.68. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $71.64 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.29 billion, a PE ratio of 24.23, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.03.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.83. The firm had revenue of $17.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.73 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 3.50% and a return on equity of 20.39%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.52 EPS. Analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.71 EPS for the current year.

MetLife declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, May 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be given a dividend of $0.545 per share. This is an increase from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 6th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.09%. MetLife’s payout ratio is presently 71.48%.

Insider Transactions at MetLife

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MET. UBS Group lowered their price objective on MetLife from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, February 5th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of MetLife from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MetLife currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.23.

MetLife Company 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.