MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Stock Position Boosted by Woodward Diversified Capital LLC

Woodward Diversified Capital LLC boosted its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 7.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 7,003 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 467 shares during the period. Woodward Diversified Capital LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $562,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MET. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at about $25,000. Transce3nd LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. North Capital Inc. bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 1st quarter valued at about $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

NYSE MET opened at $76.61 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $78.98 and a 200-day simple moving average of $79.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $65.21 and a 52-week high of $89.05.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.00 by ($0.04). The company had revenue of $18.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.06 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.89% and a net margin of 6.08%. MetLife’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.83 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 5th will be given a $0.5675 dividend. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 5th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.91%.

MetLife announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Wednesday, April 30th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to purchase up to 5.9% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MET shares. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating and set a $98.00 price objective (down previously from $99.00) on shares of MetLife in a research report on Monday. UBS Group raised their target price on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Barclays raised their target price on shares of MetLife from $88.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $94.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $97.00 target price (up from $94.00) on shares of MetLife in a report on Thursday, July 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.50.

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.