SWS Partners Sells 1,182 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

SWS Partners cut its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 3.5% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 32,372 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,182 shares during the quarter. SWS Partners’ holdings in MetLife were worth $2,651,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 0.7% in the fourth quarter. Commerzbank Aktiengesellschaft FI now owns 51,743 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,218,000 after acquiring an additional 383 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in MetLife by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,913,408 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $320,430,000 after purchasing an additional 30,187 shares in the last quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC boosted its holdings in MetLife by 25.4% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 39,179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,208,000 after purchasing an additional 7,940 shares during the period. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC grew its position in shares of MetLife by 7.0% during the 4th quarter. Fidelis Capital Partners LLC now owns 3,472 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $297,000 after purchasing an additional 228 shares in the last quarter. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth approximately $110,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MET. TD Cowen increased their price target on MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com lowered MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on MetLife from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.58.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:MET opened at $85.60 on Tuesday. MetLife, Inc. has a one year low of $67.30 and a one year high of $89.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The company has a market cap of $58.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.34, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.07. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $83.73 and a 200 day simple moving average of $82.08.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 20.42%. Research analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.55%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 36.52%.

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.