Norwood Financial Corp Increases Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Norwood Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 43.2% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 1,657 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 500 shares during the period. Norwood Financial Corp’s holdings in MetLife were worth $123,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 73.3% during the first quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the period. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Rise Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 114.7% in the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 556 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of MET stock traded down $0.67 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $70.19. 6,434,640 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,392,953. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $71.31 and its 200-day moving average is $70.10. The company has a market cap of $49.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. MetLife, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $55.18 and a fifty-two week high of $74.68.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, hitting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.39% and a net margin of 3.50%. The business had revenue of $17.02 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.73 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.52 earnings per share. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.62 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to purchase up to 6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th were given a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.11%. This is an increase from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 6th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is presently 74.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on MET. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on MetLife from $87.00 to $86.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Piper Sandler lowered their target price on MetLife from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 6th. Argus upped their target price on MetLife from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $79.92.

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.