Values First Advisors Inc. Invests $36,000 in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund bought 434 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $36,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of MetLife by 244.4% in the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the period. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. grew its position in shares of MetLife by 131.9% in the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 327 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 186 shares during the period. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its position in shares of MetLife by 374.3% in the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 277 shares during the period. Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MetLife Price Performance

MET opened at $82.41 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $57.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.80, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.07. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $83.54 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $81.00. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $67.30 and a 52-week high of $89.05.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 20.42%. As a group, analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.63 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be paid a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on MET. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on shares of MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of MetLife in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of MetLife from $93.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $92.17.

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.