MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Holdings Decreased by Moody National Bank Trust Division

Moody National Bank Trust Division lowered its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 3.6% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 14,359 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 542 shares during the quarter. Moody National Bank Trust Division’s holdings in MetLife were worth $1,008,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. CNB Bank boosted its position in MetLife by 9.3% during the 1st quarter. CNB Bank now owns 1,735 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $129,000 after purchasing an additional 147 shares during the period. Strategic Blueprint LLC boosted its position in MetLife by 2.9% during the 1st quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 5,323 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $394,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. Marcum Wealth LLC boosted its position in MetLife by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 3,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC boosted its position in MetLife by 12.5% during the 1st quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 1,470 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $109,000 after purchasing an additional 163 shares during the period. Finally, GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its position in MetLife by 73.3% during the 1st quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on MET. StockNews.com upgraded MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, May 10th. Argus boosted their price target on MetLife from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on MetLife from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their price target on MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, July 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $82.77.

MetLife Trading Down 3.7 %

Shares of NYSE MET traded down $2.60 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $67.96. 5,519,768 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,368,943. MetLife, Inc. has a 1 year low of $57.91 and a 1 year high of $79.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $48.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.35, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The business has a 50 day moving average of $71.94 and a two-hundred day moving average of $71.25.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced 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. MetLife had a return on equity of 21.41% and a net margin of 4.23%. The business had revenue of $17.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.94 earnings per share. MetLife’s revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business 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 dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.21%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 6th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is 74.91%.

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

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.