MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Sold by St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC

St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC lowered its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 2.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 12,482 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 276 shares during the period. St. Johns Investment Management Company LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $1,022,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MET. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its stake in MetLife by 1.3% during the third quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 9,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $781,000 after acquiring an additional 123 shares during the period. Abacus Planning Group Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 1.0% during the third quarter. Abacus Planning Group Inc. now owns 12,301 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,015,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Avestar Capital LLC raised its position in shares of MetLife by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Avestar Capital LLC now owns 4,264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $352,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the period. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA lifted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. First Commonwealth Financial Corp PA now owns 16,675 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,375,000 after purchasing an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Financial Management Professionals Inc. boosted its position in MetLife by 2.0% during the 3rd quarter. Financial Management Professionals Inc. now owns 6,984 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $576,000 after purchasing an additional 136 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on MET shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. Barclays lifted their price target on MetLife from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on MetLife from $93.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 14th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on MetLife in a research note on Thursday. They set a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on MetLife from $89.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $90.46.

MetLife Trading Up 1.2 %

MetLife stock opened at $86.82 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a 52 week low of $64.61 and a 52 week high of $89.05. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $60.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.50, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.07. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $83.68 and a 200 day moving average price of $79.82.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be given a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.51%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 43.95%.

About MetLife

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.