Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. Buys 35,395 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A. boosted its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 7.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 505,553 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 35,395 shares during the quarter. Edmond DE Rothschild Holding S.A.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $41,395,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AIA Group Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 21.2% in the 4th quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 16,410 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,344,000 after buying an additional 2,871 shares in the last quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in MetLife by 114.8% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 513,357 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $42,034,000 after purchasing an additional 274,376 shares during the last quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its holdings in MetLife by 43.7% in the fourth quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC now owns 5,663,177 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $463,701,000 after purchasing an additional 1,723,461 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 5.5% during the 4th quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 19,022 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,575,000 after purchasing an additional 988 shares during the last quarter. Finally, RWA Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. RWA Wealth Partners LLC now owns 7,225 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $592,000 after purchasing an additional 446 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MET stock opened at $79.19 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $53.95 billion, a PE ratio of 13.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.04. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $67.30 and a 52-week high of $89.05. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $83.29 and a 200-day simple moving average of $82.94. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. On average, equities analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were issued a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.75%. MetLife’s payout ratio is 36.52%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the company. StockNews.com cut MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on shares of MetLife in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. Cowen reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $94.58.

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.