IPG Investment Advisors LLC Makes New Investment in MetLife, Inc. $MET

IPG Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) in the 2nd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The fund acquired 22,623 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,914,000.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. California State Teachers Retirement System grew its position in shares of MetLife by 8,029.0% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 73,771,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $6,241,789,000 after acquiring an additional 72,863,779 shares during the last quarter. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new stake in MetLife in the second quarter valued at $4,381,692,000. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its stake 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 purchasing an additional 2,211,315 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in MetLife during the 4th quarter worth about $639,986,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. grew its stake in MetLife by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 7,012,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $553,543,000 after acquiring an additional 176,811 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of MetLife stock opened at $95.82 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $61.65 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.36, a P/E/G ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 0.77. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $67.33 and a 52-week high of $100.93. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $95.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $83.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.20 and a quick ratio of 0.20.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.43 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.13. MetLife had a net margin of 4.57% and a return on equity of 23.39%. The firm had revenue of $13.52 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.67 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.02 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.78 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, August 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 4.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, August 4th were given a dividend of $0.5925 per share. This represents a $2.37 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 4th. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 45.40%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group upped their price objective on MetLife from $102.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 8th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on MetLife from $87.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Barclays increased their price target on MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on MetLife from $105.00 to $108.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 11th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on MetLife from $97.00 to $103.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, July 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MetLife has an average rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $102.21.

MetLife Company Profile

MetLife, Inc (NYSE: MET) is a global financial services company that provides insurance, employee benefits and retirement solutions to individuals, employers and institutions. Its offerings include life insurance, dental and vision insurance, disability coverage, accident and health insurance, annuities, and retirement products.

Through its employer-focused business, MetLife helps organizations provide benefits and financial protection to their employees. The company also offers group insurance, individual protection products and investment management services through MetLife Investment Management, which serves institutional investors and retirement plans.

Founded in 1868, MetLife serves customers in the United States and operates internationally across Latin America, Asia, Europe and the Middle East.