OP Asset Management Ltd Takes Position in MetLife, Inc. $MET

OP Asset Management Ltd purchased a new position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) in the first quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 56,947 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,027,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in MET. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in MetLife by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,555,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,727,518,000 after purchasing an additional 7,805,814 shares in the last quarter. Dodge & Cox boosted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 53,659,664 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,419,947,000 after purchasing an additional 477,783 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,572,807 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,035,622,000 after purchasing an additional 180,683 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of MetLife by 22.9% during the 4th quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 11,883,338 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $938,071,000 after buying an additional 2,211,315 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter worth $639,986,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Trading Up 1.7%

NYSE MET opened at $86.07 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $55.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.68, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 0.78. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $67.33 and a twelve month high of $89.62. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The business’s fifty day moving average is $82.10 and its 200 day moving average is $78.08.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $14.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.49 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 22.60% and a net margin of 4.66%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.96 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 10 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th were paid a $0.5925 dividend. This is an increase from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.37 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 12th. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 45.93%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts recently weighed in on the company. Evercore set a $96.00 price objective on MetLife in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on MetLife from $91.00 to $88.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. UBS Group increased their target price on shares of MetLife from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of MetLife from $87.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.62.

Key MetLife News

Here are the key news stories impacting MetLife this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MetLife Stadium is hosting major World Cup activity, including packed matches, celebrity appearances, and heavy media coverage, which keeps the MetLife name in front of a global audience and may support brand awareness. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Local business activity around World Cup events at MetLife Stadium suggests strong demand tied to the venue, reinforcing the stadium’s role as a major event destination and potentially benefiting MetLife’s public profile. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Reports say fewer people than expected are taking trains and buses to MetLife Stadium for a World Cup match, which may indicate softer-than-hoped transit traffic but does not directly affect MetLife’s insurance business. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Several articles highlight criticism of MetLife Stadium’s turf and field conditions during World Cup play, which could create negative publicity around the MetLife name even though it is tied to the venue rather than the company’s core operations. Article Title

MetLife Profile

MetLife, Inc is a global provider of insurance, annuities and employee benefit programs. Headquartered in New York City, the company offers a range of risk protection and retirement solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life insurance, group benefits, retirement products such as annuities, and supplemental health products including dental and disability coverage.

In addition to traditional life and group insurance, MetLife provides workplace benefits and voluntary products distributed through employer-sponsored programs.