Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Invests $1.08 Million in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd acquired a new position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET - Free Report) during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 13,229 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,083,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in MetLife by 244.4% during the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 310 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. grew its position in MetLife by 131.9% during the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 327 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in MetLife during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MET has been the topic of a number of research reports. 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 note on Friday. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Barclays decreased their price target on shares of MetLife from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, MetLife currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $94.58.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MET traded up $2.11 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $86.16. The company had a trading volume of 4,838,836 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,579,201. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $67.30 and a 12 month high of $89.05. 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 firm has a market cap of $58.69 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.43, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.07. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $83.65 and its 200-day simple moving average is $81.91.

MetLife (NYSE:MET - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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, analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.53%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife's payout ratio is 36.52%.

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.