The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company Has $50.32 Million Holdings in MetLife, Inc. $MET

The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 7.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 711,501 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 48,506 shares during the period. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company owned 0.11% of MetLife worth $50,317,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Quantinno Capital Management LP raised its position in shares of MetLife by 21.3% in the 1st quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 621,375 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,944,000 after acquiring an additional 109,004 shares in the last quarter. SummitTX Capital L.P. acquired a new stake in MetLife during the first quarter worth approximately $1,855,000. Lazard Asset Management LLC grew its stake in MetLife by 803.5% during the first quarter. Lazard Asset Management LLC now owns 667,594 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $47,212,000 after purchasing an additional 593,705 shares during the period. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp increased its holdings in MetLife by 26.8% in the first quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 28,352 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,005,000 after purchasing an additional 5,987 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA lifted its stake in MetLife by 21.7% in the first quarter. Lombard Odier Asset Management Switzerland SA now owns 98,686 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,979,000 after buying an additional 17,600 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on MET. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on MetLife from $96.00 to $106.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 21st. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of MetLife from $93.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Barclays increased their target price on shares of MetLife from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, Atlantic Securities set a $103.00 price target on shares of MetLife in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $100.50.

MetLife Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of MetLife stock opened at $97.17 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.52 billion, a PE ratio of 18.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.78. MetLife, Inc. has a 52 week low of $67.33 and a 52 week high of $97.80. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $88.43 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $80.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.20.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share 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 company had revenue of $14.18 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.49 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.96 earnings per share. MetLife’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.5925 per share. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 4th. MetLife’s payout ratio is 45.93%.

About MetLife

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.