MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Receives $79.23 Average PT from Brokerages

MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) has been given a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” by the thirteen analysts that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price target among brokers that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $79.23.

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MET shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on shares of MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 15th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of MetLife from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of MetLife from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $70.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:MET opened at $71.08 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $51.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 38.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $71.55 and a 200-day moving average price of $67.35. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. MetLife has a 12 month low of $48.95 and a 12 month high of $74.68.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $18.72 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.07 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 2.36% and a return on equity of 19.48%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that MetLife will post 8.71 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be issued a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.07%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 6th. This is a boost from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is 113.66%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 value of $289,469.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 146,981 shares in the company, valued at $10,567,933.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 owns 146,981 shares in the company, valued at $10,567,933.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were 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 owns 57,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,174,893.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Corporate insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Strategic Blueprint LLC raised its position in MetLife by 2.9% in the first quarter. Strategic Blueprint LLC now owns 5,323 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $394,000 after acquiring an additional 151 shares during the period. Marcum Wealth LLC raised its position in shares of MetLife by 4.7% during the 1st quarter. Marcum Wealth LLC now owns 3,436 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its position in shares of MetLife by 73.3% during the 1st quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the period. SWS Partners raised its position in shares of MetLife by 0.3% during the 1st quarter. SWS Partners now owns 55,356 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,102,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares during the period. Finally, Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its position in shares of MetLife by 1.9% during the 4th quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 8,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $588,000 after purchasing an additional 167 shares during the period. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.