Washington Trust Advisors Inc. Sells 144 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Washington Trust Advisors Inc. reduced its position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 27.4% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 381 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 144 shares during the period. Washington Trust Advisors Inc.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $31,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. SpiderRock Advisors LLC lifted its stake in MetLife by 4.6% in the third quarter. SpiderRock Advisors LLC now owns 13,757 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,135,000 after acquiring an additional 603 shares during the period. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 3rd quarter valued at about $60,000. AIA Group Ltd raised its stake in MetLife by 101.4% in the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 13,539 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,117,000 after buying an additional 6,818 shares in the last quarter. Summit Global Investments raised its position in shares of MetLife by 259.0% in the 3rd quarter. Summit Global Investments now owns 189,512 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $15,631,000 after acquiring an additional 136,723 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Portside Wealth Group LLC grew its stake in MetLife by 4.4% in the third quarter. Portside Wealth Group LLC now owns 11,311 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $933,000 after purchasing an additional 475 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

MET stock opened at $81.02 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $56.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.33, a P/E/G ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The business’s 50-day moving average is $81.03 and its two-hundred day moving average is $75.19. MetLife, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $59.24 and a fifty-two week high of $86.94.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be given a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.69%. MetLife’s payout ratio is presently 43.95%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently issued reports on MET. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of MetLife from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. TD Cowen initiated coverage on MetLife in a research report on Wednesday, October 9th. They set a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler increased their target price on MetLife from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $89.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Citigroup upped their target price on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MetLife has a consensus 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.