Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC Invests $1.14 Million in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Sustainable Insight Capital Management LLC bought a new position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 16,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,144,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Gilbert & Cook Inc. lifted its holdings in MetLife by 4.6% in the 4th quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 13,872 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $917,000 after buying an additional 605 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management lifted its stake in MetLife by 4.6% in the fourth quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 7,288 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $502,000 after acquiring an additional 321 shares during the period. Gryphon Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at $201,000. Wealthspire Advisors LLC increased its position in MetLife by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 10,422 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $689,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares during the period. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth about $288,000. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Trading Down 3.3 %

NYSE:MET opened at $74.08 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a one year low of $57.91 and a one year high of $79.34. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $73.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $72.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $52.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.04. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by $0.15. MetLife had a net margin of 4.23% and a return on equity of 21.41%. The business had revenue of $17.82 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.94 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.68 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 6th will be given a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.94%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 6th. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 74.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MET shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on MetLife from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Argus raised their price target on MetLife from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Citigroup upped their target price on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Bank of America reduced their price target on shares of MetLife from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, MetLife currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $84.54.

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.