MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Bought by Vest Financial LLC

Vest Financial LLC grew its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 202.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 13,206 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,833 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $1,089,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MET. Abacus Planning Group Inc. lifted its position in shares of MetLife by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 12,301 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,015,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. increased its stake in MetLife by 1.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. now owns 8,548 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $705,000 after purchasing an additional 139 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its holdings in MetLife by 1.0% during the second quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 13,729 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $964,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares during the last quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in MetLife by 3.5% during the second quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,217 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $296,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Hills Bank & Trust Co grew its holdings in MetLife by 8.3% in the second quarter. Hills Bank & Trust Co now owns 1,855 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $130,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MetLife Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of NYSE:MET opened at $84.84 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $78.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of $74.21. The stock has a market capitalization of $60.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 29.15, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.04. MetLife, Inc. has a 1 year low of $57.91 and a 1 year high of $86.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.15. MetLife had a net margin of 4.23% and a return on equity of 21.41%. The company had revenue of $17.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.57 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.94 earnings per share. MetLife’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.61 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be given a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.57%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on shares of MetLife from $89.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, September 27th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of MetLife from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, August 1st. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on MetLife from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Finally, StockNews.com lowered MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $88.46.

MetLife 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.