Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Increases Position in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 8.9% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 1,176,469 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 96,523 shares during the period. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in MetLife were worth $96,905,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its stake in MetLife by 9.0% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $347,000 after buying an additional 351 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new position in shares of MetLife in the 1st quarter worth about $307,000. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its stake in MetLife by 187.6% in the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 33,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,680,000 after purchasing an additional 21,771 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in MetLife during the 2nd quarter valued at about $404,000. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in MetLife by 6.0% in the second quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 64,424 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,181,000 after buying an additional 3,639 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on MET shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, November 11th. UBS Group lowered their price target on MetLife from $95.00 to $94.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 8th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of MetLife in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Mizuho set a $102.00 price target on shares of MetLife in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $97.00 price objective on shares of MetLife and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $95.27.

MetLife Stock Performance

MET opened at $78.84 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average is $78.77 and its 200 day moving average is $78.81. The company has a current ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a market cap of $51.94 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.85, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.76. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $65.21 and a 12-month high of $87.50.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.07. MetLife had a net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 21.00%. The business had revenue of $12.46 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.64 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.95 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 3rd will be given a $0.5675 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 3rd. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.9%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is presently 42.75%.

MetLife Profile

MetLife, Inc is a global provider of insurance, annuities and employee benefit programs. Headquartered in New York City, the company offers a range of risk protection and retirement solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life insurance, group benefits, retirement products such as annuities, and supplemental health products including dental and disability coverage.

In addition to traditional life and group insurance, MetLife provides workplace benefits and voluntary products distributed through employer-sponsored programs.