6,256 Shares in MetLife, Inc. $MET Acquired by Heartland Bank & Trust Co

Heartland Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) in the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor bought 6,256 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $529,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 205.8% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the second quarter valued at $26,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management purchased a new position in MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Prosperity Bancshares Inc purchased a new position in MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Stock Performance

MetLife stock opened at $94.44 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $92.41 and its 200-day moving average is $82.17. The company has a market cap of $60.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.72 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a current ratio of 0.20 and a quick ratio of 0.20. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $67.33 and a 12 month high of $100.93.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $13.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.67 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 23.39% and a net margin of 4.57%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.02 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.72 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, August 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 4.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be given a dividend of $0.5925 per share. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. MetLife’s payout ratio is 45.40%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on MET. Atlantic Securities set a $103.00 price target on MetLife in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Barclays increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. Mizuho boosted their target price on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, July 9th. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $87.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of MetLife from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research note on Monday, June 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $101.64.

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.