Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. Boosts Holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 4.1% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 191,851 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 7,537 shares during the period. Nomura Asset Management Co. Ltd.'s holdings in MetLife were worth $15,824,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in MET. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its stake in MetLife by 7,837.0% in the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,129,353 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $79,250,000 after purchasing an additional 1,115,124 shares in the last quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI bought a new position in shares of MetLife in the third quarter worth $91,771,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in shares of MetLife by 22.4% in the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,396,274 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $378,799,000 after buying an additional 988,666 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. boosted its stake in MetLife by 79.1% during the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,726,209 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $142,378,000 after buying an additional 762,291 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its stake in MetLife by 256.6% in the 3rd quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 948,223 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $78,209,000 after acquiring an additional 682,333 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 89.81% of the company's stock.

MetLife Trading Down 1.7 %

Shares of NYSE MET traded down $1.41 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $80.33. The stock had a trading volume of 4,444,470 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,315,729. The firm has a market cap of $55.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.29, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.06. MetLife, Inc. has a 1 year low of $64.61 and a 1 year high of $89.05. 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 business has a 50 day moving average price of $83.78 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $77.20.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be paid a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.71%. MetLife's payout ratio is presently 43.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MET has been the subject of several recent analyst reports. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com raised shares of MetLife from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on MetLife from $89.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Fourteen analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat, MetLife presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average target price of $88.62.

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.