Brooklyn FI LLC Makes New Investment in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Brooklyn FI LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 8,906 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $738,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Swedbank AB increased its position in MetLife by 5.3% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,970,163 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $162,499,000 after purchasing an additional 99,328 shares during the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of MetLife by 1.7% during the third quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 9,023 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $744,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. Empowered Funds LLC increased its stake in MetLife by 8.2% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 10,408 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $858,000 after buying an additional 788 shares during the period. Quest Partners LLC lifted its stake in shares of MetLife by 299,333.3% in the third quarter. Quest Partners LLC now owns 8,983 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $741,000 after acquiring an additional 8,980 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of MetLife by 7.5% in the 3rd quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 9,693 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $799,000 after purchasing an additional 680 shares in the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Stock Up 1.7 %

MET stock opened at $83.02 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $56.56 billion, a PE ratio of 13.91, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.04. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $83.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $82.57. MetLife, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $67.30 and a fifty-two week high of $89.05. 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 (NYSE:MET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 20.42%. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were given a dividend of $0.545 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.63%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on MET shares. Barclays cut their target price on shares of MetLife from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a report on Friday, March 7th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on MetLife in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.58.

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.