Dohj LLC Decreases Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Dohj LLC decreased its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 26.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 8,446 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,107 shares during the period. Dohj LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $559,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Planned Solutions Inc. purchased a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. purchased a new position in MetLife in the 3rd quarter worth $28,000. Tennessee Valley Asset Management Partners purchased a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Headlands Technologies LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife during the 3rd quarter worth about $36,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

MET stock traded down $1.48 during trading on Friday, hitting $70.42. The stock had a trading volume of 5,650,572 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,506,510. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $48.95 and a twelve month high of $74.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $50.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.48, a PEG ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.04. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $71.44 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $67.19.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). MetLife had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 2.36%. The firm had revenue of $18.72 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.07 billion. As a group, research analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be issued a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.10%. This is a boost from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 6th. MetLife’s payout ratio is presently 113.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MetLife news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total value of $1,951,290.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,174,893.36. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In other MetLife news, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.90, for a total value of $289,469.40. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 146,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,567,933.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total transaction of $1,951,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,768 shares in the company, valued at $4,174,893.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on MET shares. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price target on MetLife from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Piper Sandler increased their price target on MetLife from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised MetLife from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $70.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on MetLife from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $79.23.

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.