SWS Partners Trims Stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

SWS Partners cut its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 38.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 33,554 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 20,655 shares during the period. SWS Partners’ holdings in MetLife were worth $2,768,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of MET. Integrated Advisors Network LLC raised its holdings in MetLife by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Integrated Advisors Network LLC now owns 3,963 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $262,000 after acquiring an additional 184 shares during the last quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC raised its holdings in MetLife by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC now owns 17,162 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,215,000 after acquiring an additional 580 shares during the last quarter. Leo Wealth LLC acquired a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $258,000. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC acquired a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $1,092,000. Finally, CWM LLC increased its holdings in shares of MetLife by 7.5% during the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 13,433 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $996,000 after buying an additional 942 shares during the last quarter. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of MET stock traded up $0.15 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $86.03. 1,019,192 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,327,927. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. MetLife, Inc. has a one year low of $57.91 and a one year high of $86.94. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $77.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $73.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $61.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 29.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.04.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.15. MetLife had a net margin of 4.23% and a return on equity of 21.41%. The business had revenue of $17.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.57 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.94 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.61 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be issued a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 5th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.53%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is currently 74.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

MET has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price objective on MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on MetLife from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on MetLife from $89.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 27th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, August 19th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on MetLife from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.46.

MetLife Company Profile

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.