Traub Capital Management LLC Buys New Shares in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Traub Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 6,005 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $483,000.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Wealthspire Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of MetLife by 1.6% during the second quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 9,946 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $800,000 after purchasing an additional 156 shares during the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in MetLife by 21.8% during the 2nd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 40,666 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,270,000 after purchasing an additional 7,288 shares during the period. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. raised its stake in shares of MetLife by 13.2% during the 2nd quarter. Pinnacle Wealth Planning Services Inc. now owns 6,917 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $556,000 after buying an additional 806 shares during the last quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 9.4% in the 2nd quarter. Frank Rimerman Advisors LLC now owns 9,734 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $783,000 after buying an additional 839 shares during the period. Finally, Mount Lucas Management LP boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 9.1% in the second quarter. Mount Lucas Management LP now owns 25,252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,031,000 after buying an additional 2,112 shares during the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have commented on MET. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of MetLife in a research report on Monday. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of MetLife from $96.00 to $95.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, November 6th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $93.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of MetLife from $96.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, November 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, ten have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, MetLife currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.00.

MetLife Stock Performance

NYSE MET opened at $75.41 on Wednesday. MetLife, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $65.21 and a fifty-two week high of $89.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.78, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 0.87. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $79.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $78.95. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.07. MetLife had a net margin of 5.83% and a return on equity of 19.88%. The firm had revenue of $17.90 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.64 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.95 EPS. The company’s revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 4th will be issued a $0.5675 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 4th. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is currently 42.75%.

About MetLife

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.