MetLife, Inc. $MET Stock Holdings Trimmed by D.A. Davidson & CO.

D.A. Davidson & CO. decreased its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 13.4% in the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 45,030 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 6,993 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $3,185,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank acquired a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at about $639,986,000. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in MetLife by 12.1% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,555,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,727,518,000 after buying an additional 7,805,814 shares in the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in MetLife by 22.9% during the fourth quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 11,883,338 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $938,071,000 after acquiring an additional 2,211,315 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in MetLife by 105.3% during the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 3,305,620 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $271,424,000 after acquiring an additional 1,695,563 shares during the period. Finally, Man Group plc raised its position in MetLife by 325.5% in the second quarter. Man Group plc now owns 1,344,551 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $108,129,000 after acquiring an additional 1,028,554 shares in the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MetLife News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting MetLife this week:

• Positive Sentiment: MetLife Stadium is hosting the World Cup final, which keeps the venue in the global spotlight and may highlight the company’s high-profile asset and brand visibility. FIFA insists MetLife Stadium’s pitch is ready for the World Cup final despite criticism
• Positive Sentiment: Heavy media coverage around ticket sales, fan guides, food and drink pricing, and kickoff details suggests strong interest and traffic around the event at MetLife Stadium. How to buy tickets to see Spain in World Cup Final at MetLife
• Neutral Sentiment: News about weather, heat, storms, air quality, and wildfire smoke could affect the event experience, but it does not directly change MetLife’s earnings outlook. World Cup final could be shaped by heat, storms and air quality at MetLife Stadium
• Neutral Sentiment: FIFA’s criticism of the pitch and the “money grab” controversy may create headline risk for the venue, but the impact on MetLife’s stock is likely limited unless the issue affects operations or reputation more broadly. NJ governor slams FIFA’s money grab over sales of MetLife World Cup pitch
• Negative Sentiment: Ongoing criticism about the field quality and pitch conditions at MetLife Stadium could dent the venue’s reputation, even though it is unlikely to materially affect MetLife’s insurance business. The MetLife trap: the controversial pitch threatening the final | OneFootball

MetLife Stock Down 0.0%

MetLife stock opened at $93.99 on Monday. The company has a current ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $67.33 and a 1-year high of $94.86. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $85.80 and its 200-day simple moving average is $79.07. The company has a market capitalization of $60.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.21, a P/E/G ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.78.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.15. The firm had revenue of $14.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.49 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 22.60%. MetLife’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.96 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.94 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be given a $0.5925 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 45.93%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MET has been the subject of several research reports. Evercore set a $96.00 price objective on shares of MetLife in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 12th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of MetLife from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, June 15th. Finally, Piper Sandler upped their price target on MetLife from $86.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MetLife presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $98.57.

MetLife Company 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.