MetLife (NYSE:MET) Upgraded to Buy at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of MetLife (NYSE:MET) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research report report published on Tuesday morning.

Other equities analysts also recently issued reports about the company. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on MetLife from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Barclays cut their target price on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, TD Cowen started coverage on shares of MetLife in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 target price on the stock. Fourteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $88.46.

MetLife Stock Up 0.5 %

Shares of MetLife stock opened at $82.20 on Tuesday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $81.12 and a 200-day moving average of $75.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The company has a market capitalization of $56.92 billion, a PE ratio of 16.57, a P/E/G ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.05. MetLife has a 1-year low of $60.26 and a 1-year high of $86.94.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.545 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 5th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.65%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.95%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MetLife

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. National Bank of Canada FI increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 54.9% during the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 371,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,983,000 after acquiring an additional 131,538 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 8.9% during the third quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 6,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $525,000 after acquiring an additional 520 shares during the period. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the first quarter valued at approximately $1,053,000. Entropy Technologies LP increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 38.3% during the first quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 30,473 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,258,000 after acquiring an additional 8,440 shares during the period. Finally, M&G Plc acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,346,000. Institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

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.