Swiss National Bank Lowers Stock Holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Swiss National Bank cut its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) by 1.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,794,100 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 25,400 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned about 0.26% of MetLife worth $147,977,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in MetLife by 22.4% during 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. Legal & General Group Plc lifted its holdings in MetLife by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,299,800 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $371,993,000 after buying an additional 269,246 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,224,930 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $226,358,000 after purchasing an additional 100,782 shares during the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its position in MetLife by 29.7% in the 1st quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,120,275 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $157,133,000 after acquiring an additional 485,811 shares during the period. Finally, AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its position in MetLife by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 2,063,607 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $144,845,000 after purchasing an additional 16,985 shares during the period. 89.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MET has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. TD Cowen began coverage on MetLife in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a "buy" rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on MetLife from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. StockNews.com upgraded shares of MetLife from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus price target of $88.46.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET stock traded up $0.04 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $83.37. 1,859,328 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,324,170. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm has a market cap of $57.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $81.60 and a two-hundred day moving average of $75.62. MetLife, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $61.85 and a fifty-two week high of $86.94.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.61%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. MetLife's dividend payout ratio is presently 43.95%.

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.