Koenig Investment Advisory LLC Buys Shares of 39,201 MetLife, Inc. $MET

Koenig Investment Advisory LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund purchased 39,201 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,977,000. MetLife comprises about 2.4% of Koenig Investment Advisory LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 11th biggest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in MetLife by 205.8% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the period. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC grew its position in MetLife by 790.0% in the 3rd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 356 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 316 shares during the period. Sound Income Strategies LLC raised its stake in MetLife by 58.9% during the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 383 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Prosperity Bancshares Inc bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Piper Sandler increased their target price on MetLife from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, May 26th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on MetLife from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Weiss Ratings upgraded MetLife from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $87.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 13th. One 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, MetLife currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $95.31.

MetLife Trading Up 0.2%

MetLife stock opened at $85.76 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $67.33 and a 12-month high of $89.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $55.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.78. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $81.04 and a 200 day moving average of $77.77. The company has a current ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.27 by $0.15. The business had revenue of $14.18 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $19.49 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 22.60%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.96 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.98 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th were issued a dividend of $0.5925 per share. This is a boost from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, May 12th. MetLife’s payout ratio is 45.93%.

MetLife Profile

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.