Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Buys 7,270 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. increased its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 3.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 247,689 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,270 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $20,281,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of MET. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $32,000. Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Atala Financial Inc bought a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $45,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Stock Down 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:MET opened at $82.33 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $67.30 and a 12-month high of $89.05. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $83.48 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $82.60. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.09 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.79, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.04.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. On average, research analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were paid a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is currently 36.52%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a research note on Friday, March 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. TD Cowen raised their target price on MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets began coverage on MetLife in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 target price for the company. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.58.

MetLife 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.