MetLife (NYSE:MET) Given New $86.00 Price Target at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods

MetLife (NYSE:MET) had its target price trimmed by Keefe, Bruyette & Woods from $87.00 to $86.00 in a report published on Tuesday, Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an outperform rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other equities research analysts have also commented on MET. Piper Sandler dropped their price target on shares of MetLife from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an overweight rating on the stock in a research note on Monday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an overweight rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. UBS Group lowered their price target on MetLife from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of MetLife from a neutral rating to a buy rating and boosted their price target for the stock from $70.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MetLife presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $78.92.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET opened at $71.26 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market cap of $50.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.49, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.03. MetLife has a 52 week low of $48.95 and a 52 week high of $74.68. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $71.76 and a 200-day moving average of $67.65.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 earnings per share for the quarter, hitting the consensus estimate of $1.83. The firm had revenue of $17.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.73 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 3.50% and a return on equity of 20.39%. MetLife’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.52 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that MetLife will post 8.69 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.545 per share. This is a boost from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 6th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is presently 71.48%.

MetLife announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 1st that allows the company to buyback $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at MetLife

In related news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total value of $1,951,290.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 57,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,174,893.36. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of the firm’s 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 completion of the sale, the insider now owns 146,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,567,933.90. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total value of $1,951,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,768 shares in the company, valued at $4,174,893.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MetLife

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. bought a new stake in MetLife during the 3rd quarter worth about $28,000. Planned Solutions Inc. acquired a new stake in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its stake in shares of MetLife by 73.3% in the first quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

About MetLife

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.