MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Receives $82.77 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) have received an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the thirteen brokerages that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twelve have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1-year price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $82.85.

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MET shares. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of MetLife from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of MetLife from $82.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its stake in MetLife by 73.3% during the 1st quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners bought a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Pineridge Advisors LLC bought a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in MetLife in the second quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

NYSE:MET opened at $69.85 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $49.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.00, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.11. MetLife has a one year low of $57.91 and a one year high of $79.34. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $71.66 and a 200 day moving average price of $71.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $17.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.57 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.23% and a return on equity of 21.41%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.94 EPS. Analysts anticipate that MetLife will post 8.62 earnings per share for the current year.

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

MetLife Announces Dividend

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 paid a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.12%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 6th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.91%.

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.