Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC Purchases 474 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 3.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 12,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 474 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $1,051,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of MET. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in MetLife by 54.9% during the 1st quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 371,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,983,000 after acquiring an additional 131,538 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife in the first quarter worth about $1,053,000. Entropy Technologies LP increased its stake in MetLife by 38.3% in the 1st quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 30,473 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,258,000 after buying an additional 8,440 shares during the period. M&G Plc purchased a new stake in MetLife in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,346,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board grew its stake in MetLife by 53.0% in the 1st quarter. Canada Pension Plan Investment Board now owns 618,650 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,848,000 after acquiring an additional 214,367 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

NYSE MET opened at $82.39 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $57.91 and a 12-month high of $86.94. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $79.62 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $74.43. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The firm has a market capitalization of $58.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.04.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $17.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.57 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 21.41% and a net margin of 4.23%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.94 EPS. Analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.58 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be paid a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $89.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Barclays started coverage on MetLife in a report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $91.00 target price for the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on MetLife from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Bank of America dropped their target price 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.46.

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.