MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Stake Lowered by Point72 Europe London LLP

Point72 Europe London LLP reduced its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 12.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 99,771 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 13,629 shares during the period. Point72 Europe London LLP's holdings in MetLife were worth $6,598,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the stock. Jacobi Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 4.5% during the 4th quarter. Jacobi Capital Management LLC now owns 18,288 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,209,000 after acquiring an additional 783 shares in the last quarter. Ethic Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 4.0% during the 4th quarter. Ethic Inc. now owns 112,569 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,444,000 after acquiring an additional 4,371 shares in the last quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 27.7% during the 4th quarter. Bridgewater Associates LP now owns 580,797 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $38,408,000 after acquiring an additional 126,076 shares in the last quarter. Symmetry Investments LP purchased a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at $241,000. Finally, Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at $3,117,000. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at MetLife

In related news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total value of $1,951,290.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 57,768 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,174,893.36. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other MetLife news, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.90, for a total transaction of $289,469.40. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 146,981 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,567,933.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total transaction of $1,951,290.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,768 shares in the company, valued at $4,174,893.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MET traded down $1.21 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $69.06. 2,997,989 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,375,903. The stock's fifty day moving average is $71.61 and its 200 day moving average is $69.59. The stock has a market cap of $49.11 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $52.97 and a 1-year high of $74.68.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts' consensus estimates of $1.83. The business had revenue of $17.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.73 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 3.50% and a return on equity of 20.39%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.52 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Wednesday, May 1st that permits the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be paid a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 6th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.16%. This is a boost from MetLife's previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. MetLife's payout ratio is presently 74.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of MetLife from $87.00 to $86.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, May 7th. Argus lifted their price objective on shares of MetLife from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 22nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, May 10th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of MetLife from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 11th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $79.08.

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.

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