MetLife, Inc. $MET Shares Purchased by Pzena Investment Management LLC

Pzena Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 22.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 11,883,338 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 2,211,315 shares during the quarter. MetLife comprises about 2.8% of Pzena Investment Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 12th biggest position. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned approximately 1.80% of MetLife worth $938,071,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in MET. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 9.0% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 4,240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $347,000 after purchasing an additional 351 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new stake in MetLife during the 1st quarter worth about $307,000. Empowered Funds LLC lifted its position in MetLife by 187.6% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 33,378 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,680,000 after acquiring an additional 21,771 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife during the 2nd quarter worth about $404,000. Finally, Jump Financial LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife during the 2nd quarter worth about $444,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Stock Performance

NYSE MET opened at $84.29 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $74.77 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $76.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $54.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.34, a PEG ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.78. MetLife, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $67.33 and a fifty-two week high of $84.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.20.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $14.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.49 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 22.60% and a net margin of 4.66%.The company’s revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.96 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.92 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.5925 per share. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 12th. This is an increase from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.93%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MET has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on MetLife from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. TD Cowen lowered their price target on MetLife from $91.00 to $88.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on MetLife from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings raised MetLife from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $95.15.

About MetLife

MetLife, Inc is a global provider of insurance, annuities and employee benefit programs. Headquartered in New York City, the company offers a range of risk protection and retirement solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life insurance, group benefits, retirement products such as annuities, and supplemental health products including dental and disability coverage.

In addition to traditional life and group insurance, MetLife provides workplace benefits and voluntary products distributed through employer-sponsored programs.