Forte Capital LLC ADV Purchases 1,835 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Forte Capital LLC ADV boosted its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 4.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 40,252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,835 shares during the period. Forte Capital LLC ADV’s holdings in MetLife were worth $3,296,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MET. United Asset Strategies Inc. increased its position in shares of MetLife by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 10,933 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $895,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Barrett & Company Inc. increased its position in shares of MetLife by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 11,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $978,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its position in shares of MetLife by 1.3% during the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 9,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $781,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its position in shares of MetLife by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 6,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $495,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the period. Finally, First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA increased its position in shares of MetLife by 0.8% during the third quarter. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA now owns 16,675 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,375,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET opened at $82.82 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $67.30 and a twelve month high of $89.05. The company has a 50 day moving average of $83.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $81.26. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a market cap of $57.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.07.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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 return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. As a group, analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.545 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.63%. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 36.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on MET. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. StockNews.com lowered shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of MetLife in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price objective on the stock. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MetLife presently has a consensus 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.