J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG Takes Position in MetLife, Inc. $MET

J. Safra Sarasin Holding AG purchased a new position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm purchased 16,067 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,323,000.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Stonegate Investment Group LLC increased its position in MetLife by 10.9% in the 3rd quarter. Stonegate Investment Group LLC now owns 8,925 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $735,000 after acquiring an additional 880 shares during the period. Intact Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in MetLife by 19.1% in the third quarter. Intact Investment Management Inc. now owns 13,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,128,000 after purchasing an additional 2,200 shares during the period. Algebris UK Ltd. raised its position in MetLife by 15.9% during the 3rd quarter. Algebris UK Ltd. now owns 474,891 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,087,000 after purchasing an additional 65,081 shares during the last quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. lifted its holdings in MetLife by 5.5% during the 3rd quarter. First Citizens Bank & Trust Co. now owns 3,031 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $250,000 after buying an additional 157 shares during the period. Finally, Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in shares of MetLife by 4.9% in the 3rd quarter. Sagespring Wealth Partners LLC now owns 8,008 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $660,000 after buying an additional 377 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Stock Performance

NYSE:MET opened at $76.33 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.18, a current ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.21 and a twelve month high of $87.64. The company has a fifty day moving average of $78.61 and a 200-day moving average of $78.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $50.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.37, a P/E/G ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.76.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.37 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.07. MetLife had a net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 21.00%. The business had revenue of $12.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.64 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.95 earnings per share. MetLife’s revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 3rd will be paid a $0.5675 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 3rd. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 42.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price objective on MetLife from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, November 11th. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $94.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Morgan Stanley set a $101.00 price objective on shares of MetLife and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Evercore ISI set a $97.00 price objective on shares of MetLife and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Barclays set a $90.00 target price on shares of MetLife in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.27.

MetLife 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.