Townsquare Capital LLC Decreases Stake in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Townsquare Capital LLC decreased its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 23.0% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 25,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 7,475 shares during the quarter. Townsquare Capital LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $2,060,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Quaker Wealth Management LLC grew its position in MetLife by 198.2% during the second quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 672 shares during the period. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. Salomon & Ludwin LLC increased its stake in MetLife by 95.4% in the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 422 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $35,000 after purchasing an additional 206 shares in the last quarter. True Wealth Design LLC raised its holdings in MetLife by 564.1% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $35,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MTM Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in MetLife during the second quarter worth $37,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

MetLife Stock Performance

NYSE MET opened at $78.22 on Friday. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $78.69 and its 200 day moving average price is $78.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.18, a quick ratio of 0.18 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. MetLife, Inc. has a twelve month low of $65.21 and a twelve month high of $87.56. The company has a market capitalization of $51.54 billion, a PE ratio of 14.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.76.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.37 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.07. MetLife had a net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 21.00%. The company had revenue of $12.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.64 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.95 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 3rd will be issued a $0.5675 dividend. This represents a $2.27 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 3rd. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.75%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 13th. Mizuho set a $102.00 price target on shares of MetLife in a report on Wednesday, January 14th. Morgan Stanley set a $101.00 price objective on shares of MetLife and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, December 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on MetLife from $92.00 to $90.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, November 11th. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $97.00 price target on MetLife and gave the stock an “in-line” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 6th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $95.27.

MetLife Profile

MetLife, Inc is a global provider of insurance, annuities and employee benefit programs. Headquartered in New York City, the company offers a range of risk protection and retirement solutions to individuals, employers and institutional clients. Its core businesses include life insurance, group benefits, retirement products such as annuities, and supplemental health products including dental and disability coverage.

In addition to traditional life and group insurance, MetLife provides workplace benefits and voluntary products distributed through employer-sponsored programs.