Wealthspire Advisors LLC Grows Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Wealthspire Advisors LLC lifted its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 20.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 11,777 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,969 shares during the quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $964,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 244.4% in the third quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 131.9% in the third quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 327 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the third quarter worth $30,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Trading Up 1.3 %

MET stock opened at $82.29 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $67.30 and a twelve month high of $89.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.98 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.07. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $83.41 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $81.69.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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, analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be issued a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife’s payout ratio is presently 36.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MET has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of MetLife in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $92.58.

About MetLife

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.