Groupama Asset Managment Acquires 142,572 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Groupama Asset Managment grew its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 33.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 569,746 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 142,572 shares during the quarter. Groupama Asset Managment owned approximately 0.08% of MetLife worth $46,440,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also modified their holdings of MET. CX Institutional boosted its holdings in MetLife by 15.9% during the fourth quarter. CX Institutional now owns 68,005 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,568,000 after acquiring an additional 9,337 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in MetLife by 109.2% in the 4th quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 8,826,658 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $722,727,000 after buying an additional 4,606,748 shares during the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 27.3% in the fourth quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 13,692 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,116,000 after acquiring an additional 2,940 shares during the period. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank grew its stake in shares of MetLife by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Zurcher Kantonalbank Zurich Cantonalbank now owns 776,244 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $63,559,000 after acquiring an additional 12,723 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Kingswood Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in MetLife during the fourth quarter worth $259,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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MetLife Trading Down 8.1 %

MET traded down $6.69 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $75.80. The stock had a trading volume of 6,197,321 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,298,285. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The stock's fifty day simple moving average is $82.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $83.01. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $67.30 and a 1-year high of $89.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $51.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.04.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. As a group, research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were given a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.88%. MetLife's payout ratio is 36.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MET has been the topic of several research analyst reports. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of MetLife in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a "market perform" rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of MetLife from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $94.85.

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.