L & S Advisors Inc Takes $7.03 Million Position in MetLife, Inc. $MET

L & S Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 89,001 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $7,026,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Activest Wealth Management increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 205.8% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the period. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 790.0% during the third quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 356 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 58.9% during the fourth quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 383 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the period. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth approximately $32,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Price Performance

MetLife stock opened at $79.79 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $73.91 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $76.54. MetLife, Inc. has a one year low of $67.33 and a one year high of $83.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.20 and a quick ratio of 0.20. The firm has a market cap of $51.34 billion, a PE ratio of 15.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.78.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.15. MetLife had a return on equity of 22.60% and a net margin of 4.66%.The firm had revenue of $14.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.96 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.5925 per share. This is a boost from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 12th. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is 45.93%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MET has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wall Street Zen lowered MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on MetLife from $87.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on MetLife from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. TD Cowen lowered their target price on MetLife from $91.00 to $88.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 11th. Finally, UBS Group increased their target price on MetLife from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $95.15.

MetLife Company 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.