Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. Increases Holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc. increased its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 36.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,114 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,966 shares during the quarter. Benjamin F. Edwards & Company Inc.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $735,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MET. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MetLife by 1.9% in the fourth quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 8,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $588,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. Eley Financial Management Inc grew its position in MetLife by 1.0% during the third quarter. Eley Financial Management Inc now owns 16,348 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,028,000 after buying an additional 168 shares in the last quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC increased its stake in MetLife by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. Austin Private Wealth LLC now owns 4,367 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $289,000 after acquiring an additional 170 shares during the last quarter. KLCM Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of MetLife by 3.6% in the 3rd quarter. KLCM Advisors Inc. now owns 4,920 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $310,000 after acquiring an additional 171 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Highland Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Highland Capital Management LLC now owns 61,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,083,000 after purchasing an additional 180 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

MET stock opened at $71.26 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.49, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.03. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $71.76 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.65. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $48.95 and a 12-month high of $74.68.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83. The company had revenue of $17.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.73 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.39% and a net margin of 3.50%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.52 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.69 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, May 1st that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

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

Insider Activity at MetLife

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on MET shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of MetLife from $87.00 to $86.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on MetLife from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday. Finally, StockNews.com raised MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, May 3rd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MetLife presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $78.92.

MetLife Company 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.