Clearbridge Investments LLC Has $458.93 Million Holdings in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Clearbridge Investments LLC cut its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 4.4% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 5,813,831 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 270,404 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $458,928,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of MET. Activest Wealth Management grew its stake in MetLife by 205.8% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $25,000 after buying an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. 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 last quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC grew its position in MetLife by 58.9% in the 4th quarter. Sound Income Strategies LLC now owns 383 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after purchasing an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Foster Dykema Cabot & Partners LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife in the 3rd quarter worth $32,000. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT acquired a new stake in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth $32,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

MET has been the topic of several research analyst reports. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of MetLife from $98.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $96.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of MetLife from $103.00 to $99.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 14th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on shares of MetLife from $89.00 to $93.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 21st. Finally, Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of MetLife from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 26th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, MetLife presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $95.31.

MetLife Price Performance

NYSE:MET opened at $84.61 on Friday. The company has a 50-day moving average of $77.84 and a 200-day moving average of $77.00. The company has a market capitalization of $54.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.40, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.78. MetLife, Inc. has a 52 week low of $67.33 and a 52 week high of $85.29. 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 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.15. The company had revenue of $14.18 billion during 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 firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.96 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.96 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 9th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 12th will be issued 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 of this dividend is Tuesday, May 12th. This is a positive change from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.57. MetLife’s payout ratio is 45.93%.

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.