MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Receives $84.54 Average Target Price from Analysts

MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the thirteen brokerages that are presently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $85.23.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price target on shares of MetLife from $89.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on MetLife from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, August 19th. Citigroup raised their price target on MetLife from $83.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 23rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on shares of MetLife from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MetLife

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of MET. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the 1st quarter worth approximately $7,012,000. National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in MetLife by 54.9% during the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 371,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,983,000 after acquiring an additional 131,538 shares during the period. Stifel Financial Corp lifted its holdings in MetLife by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,005,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $132,641,000 after purchasing an additional 35,782 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the first quarter valued at about $1,053,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 2,313.7% during the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 104,877 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,772,000 after purchasing an additional 100,532 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET opened at $81.81 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.18 billion, a PE ratio of 28.11, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.04. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $75.54 and a 200-day moving average price of $73.12. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. MetLife has a fifty-two week low of $57.91 and a fifty-two week high of $82.99.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $17.82 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.57 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 21.41% and a net margin of 4.23%. The business’s revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.94 EPS. Equities analysts predict that MetLife will post 8.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 6th were paid a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 6th. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 74.91%.

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.