Gulf International Bank UK Ltd Cuts Stock Holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd lowered its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 45,243 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 609 shares during the quarter. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd’s holdings in MetLife were worth $3,704,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Swedbank AB boosted its stake in MetLife by 5.3% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,970,163 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $162,499,000 after buying an additional 99,328 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of MetLife by 3.1% during the 3rd quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 5,918 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $488,000 after acquiring an additional 178 shares in the last quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 177.3% during the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 416 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 266 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the third quarter valued at $213,000. Finally, Golden State Equity Partners bought a new stake in MetLife in the third quarter worth $205,000. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET stock opened at $84.08 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $83.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $81.72. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $67.30 and a 52-week 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 firm has a market capitalization of $58.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.07.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be paid a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.59%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MET has been the subject of several research reports. 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 price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on shares of MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Barclays reduced their price objective on MetLife from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $92.58.

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.