MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Purchased by Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC

Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC raised its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 28.2% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 1,196 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 263 shares during the quarter. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $98,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich acquired a new stake in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

MetLife stock opened at $68.71 on Friday. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $82.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $82.90. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $67.30 and a 12 month high of $89.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The stock has a market capitalization of $46.81 billion, a PE ratio of 11.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.89.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS 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%. Equities analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were paid a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.17%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.52%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently commented on MET. Piper Sandler increased their price objective on MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a report on Friday, March 7th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of MetLife from $88.00 to $86.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, UBS Group raised their price objective on MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.85.

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.