MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Sold by Natixis Advisors L.P.

Natixis Advisors L.P. reduced its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 6.5% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 210,754 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 14,729 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors L.P.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $13,937,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in MET. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. purchased a new stake in MetLife during the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Planned Solutions Inc. acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new position in MetLife in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $36,000. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on MetLife from $87.00 to $86.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. UBS Group reduced their price target on shares of MetLife from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, February 5th. StockNews.com raised shares of MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MetLife presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $78.92.

MetLife Stock Up 0.1 %

MET opened at $71.26 on Wednesday. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $48.95 and a twelve month high of $74.68. The firm has a market cap of $50.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $71.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.65.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83. The business had revenue of $17.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.73 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 3.50% and a return on equity of 20.39%. MetLife’s revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.52 EPS. Research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be given a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 6th. This is a boost from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 71.48%.

MetLife announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are often a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at MetLife

In other news, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.90, for a total transaction of $289,469.40. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 146,981 shares in the company, valued at $10,567,933.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. In other news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total transaction of $1,951,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 57,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,174,893.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of MetLife stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.90, for a total value of $289,469.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 146,981 shares in the company, valued at $10,567,933.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.32% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About MetLife

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.