Intech Investment Management LLC Lowers Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Intech Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 12.2% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,339 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,492 shares during the quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $2,397,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. CNB Bank boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 9.3% in the first quarter. CNB Bank now owns 1,735 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $129,000 after buying an additional 147 shares in the last quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC raised its holdings in MetLife by 2.9% during the first quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 5,323 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $394,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the last quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC raised its holdings in MetLife by 4.7% during the first quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 3,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $255,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the last quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC raised its holdings in MetLife by 12.5% during the first quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 1,470 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $109,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its holdings in MetLife by 73.3% during the first quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MetLife stock traded down $0.61 on Friday, reaching $74.78. 2,138,770 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,187,697. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The company’s 50-day moving average is $71.49 and its two-hundred day moving average is $70.77. The firm has a market cap of $53.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.11. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $57.91 and a 1-year high of $76.90.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.83. The business had revenue of $17.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.73 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.39% and a net margin of 3.50%. The company’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.52 EPS. As a group, research analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.59 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 6th will be issued a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 6th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 74.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on MET shares. Argus lifted their price objective on MetLife from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 10th. Piper Sandler reduced their price objective on MetLife from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 6th. StockNews.com cut MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $80.46.

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.