Mizuho Issues Positive Forecast for MetLife (NYSE:MET) Stock Price

MetLife (NYSE:MET) had its price objective hoisted by analysts at Mizuho from $95.00 to $102.00 in a research report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “outperform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Mizuho’s price objective suggests a potential upside of 13.22% from the company’s current price.

A number of other research analysts have also commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on MetLife from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 12th. UBS Group boosted their target price on MetLife from $102.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Barclays upped their price target on MetLife from $93.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on MetLife from $87.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 13th. Finally, Bank of America dropped their price objective on MetLife from $103.00 to $99.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, MetLife currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $97.23.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET stock opened at $90.09 on Thursday. MetLife has a 1 year low of $67.33 and a 1 year high of $92.27. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $83.93 and its 200-day moving average is $78.49. The firm has a market capitalization of $57.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.46, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.20, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.27 by $0.15. MetLife had a net margin of 4.66% and a return on equity of 22.60%. The business had revenue of $14.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.49 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.96 earnings per share. MetLife’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that MetLife will post 9.97 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On MetLife

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in MET. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in MetLife by 12.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 72,555,335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,727,518,000 after buying an additional 7,805,814 shares during the period. Dodge & Cox grew its position in shares of MetLife by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Dodge & Cox now owns 53,659,664 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,419,947,000 after buying an additional 477,783 shares during the period. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 1.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,572,807 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,035,622,000 after acquiring an additional 180,683 shares during the last quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 22.9% in the 4th quarter. Pzena Investment Management LLC now owns 11,883,338 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $938,071,000 after acquiring an additional 2,211,315 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $639,986,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About MetLife

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.