MetLife, Inc. $MET Stock Holdings Lowered by BDF Gestion

BDF Gestion lowered its position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 33.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 24,460 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 12,102 shares during the period. BDF Gestion’s holdings in MetLife were worth $2,303,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Nvwm LLC boosted its stake in MetLife by 655.3% during the 3rd quarter. Nvwm LLC now owns 287 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 249 shares during the last quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the second quarter worth $26,000. Burk Holdings LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the second quarter valued at $27,000. Highland Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the second quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Elevation Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 123.5% during the third quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently commented on MET shares. Atlantic Securities set a $103.00 price objective on MetLife in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Piper Sandler upgraded shares of MetLife from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their target price for the company from $99.00 to $110.00 in a research note on Tuesday, September 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of MetLife from $103.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, August 10th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $103.00 to $111.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b)” rating on shares of MetLife in a report on Friday, September 11th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $105.19.

MetLife Stock Performance

MetLife stock traded down $0.43 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $100.33. 596,024 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,611,538. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $67.33 and a 12-month high of $102.43. The business’s 50-day moving average is $96.87 and its 200-day moving average is $88.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.20 and a quick ratio of 0.20. The stock has a market capitalization of $64.55 billion, a PE ratio of 19.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.78.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $13.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.67 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 23.39% and a net margin of 4.57%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.02 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.93 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback plan on Wednesday, August 5th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 4.8% of its shares through open market purchases. Share buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 8th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 3rd will be issued a $0.5925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 3rd. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 45.40%.

About MetLife

MetLife, Inc (NYSE: MET) is a global financial services company that provides insurance, retirement, and employee benefits solutions to individuals, employers, and institutions. Its offerings include life insurance, dental and vision coverage, accident and disability insurance, annuities, retirement savings products, and related financial services.

Through its institutional and workplace businesses, MetLife helps employers provide benefits and retirement programs to their employees. The company also serves individual customers with protection and income products.