Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. Boosts Stock Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 1.3% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 9,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 123 shares during the period. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $781,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 22.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,396,274 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $378,799,000 after buying an additional 988,666 shares during the period. Legal & General Group Plc increased its position in MetLife by 5.4% during the 2nd quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 5,299,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $371,993,000 after purchasing an additional 269,246 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its holdings in MetLife by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,224,930 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $226,358,000 after purchasing an additional 100,782 shares in the last quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd lifted its position in shares of MetLife by 0.8% in the 2nd quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 2,063,607 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $144,845,000 after purchasing an additional 16,985 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB lifted its position in shares of MetLife by 5.3% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 1,970,163 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $162,499,000 after purchasing an additional 99,328 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET opened at $87.36 on Tuesday. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $62.81 and a twelve month high of $87.64. The company has a market capitalization of $60.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.61, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.05. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $82.68 and a 200 day moving average of $76.18. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be issued a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.50%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. MetLife’s payout ratio is 43.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on MET shares. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of MetLife from $89.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Bank of America lowered their target price on MetLife from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on MetLife from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. StockNews.com raised MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of MetLife in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 target price on the stock. Fourteen research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $88.46.

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.