Cetera Investment Advisers Has $15.50 Million Stock Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Cetera Investment Advisers boosted its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 2.2% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 189,333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,149 shares during the quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers’ holdings in MetLife were worth $15,503,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of MET. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth $32,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Graney & King LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Stock Up 0.3 %

Shares of MetLife stock opened at $77.82 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $77.09 and its 200 day moving average is $81.24. MetLife, Inc. has a one year low of $65.21 and a one year high of $89.05. The firm has a market cap of $52.24 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.04, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.85. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.00 by ($0.04). MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. The company had revenue of $18.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.06 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.83 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current year.

MetLife announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, April 30th that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 5.9% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 6th will be given a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 6th. This is a boost from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is 36.91%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on MET shares. Barclays dropped their target price on MetLife from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 11th. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of MetLife in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 target price on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on shares of MetLife from $109.00 to $94.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and fourteen have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $92.69.

MetLife 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.