Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 3,166 MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm purchased 3,166 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $259,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of MET. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in MetLife by 244.4% in the third quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 310 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 220 shares during the period. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. increased its holdings in MetLife by 131.9% in the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 327 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the last quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC boosted its stake in MetLife by 374.3% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 351 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new stake in MetLife in the third quarter worth $30,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of MET stock traded up $0.29 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $84.92. 5,285,281 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,553,012. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.80 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.07. MetLife, Inc. has a one year low of $65.65 and a one year high of $89.05. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $83.96 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $80.68.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a net margin of 5.27% and a return on equity of 20.01%. Sell-side analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.18 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.57%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MET has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Barclays upped their target price on MetLife from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on MetLife from $93.00 to $92.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. TD Cowen raised their target price on shares of MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of MetLife in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $97.00 price objective for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MetLife currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $90.46.

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.