Westpac Banking Corp Invests $1.30 Million in MetLife, Inc. $MET

Westpac Banking Corp acquired a new position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) during the second quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund acquired 15,387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $1,302,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MET. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC increased its holdings in MetLife by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Commonwealth Retirement Investments LLC now owns 26,953 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,128,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 1.3% during the 4th quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 10,156 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $802,000 after acquiring an additional 135 shares during the last quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 5,813 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $411,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Worth Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of MetLife by 3.1% during the 2nd quarter. Worth Asset Management LLC now owns 4,551 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $385,000 after acquiring an additional 138 shares during the period. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 29,687 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,343,000 after purchasing an additional 141 shares in the last quarter. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the company. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on MetLife from $93.00 to $103.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Barclays upped their price target on MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 6th. Mizuho raised their price objective on MetLife from $95.00 to $102.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 9th. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price objective on MetLife from $102.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $101.64.

More MetLife News

Here are the key news stories impacting MetLife this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street Zen upgraded MetLife to a Buy rating, providing a favorable near-term sentiment catalyst for MetLife, Inc. (NYSE: MET). MetLife Upgraded by Wall Street Zen to Buy Rating
• Positive Sentiment: Dowling & Partners issued a positive outlook for MetLife’s earnings, reinforcing expectations for continued operating strength. This view follows the company’s latest reported quarter, when earnings per share exceeded consensus estimates and revenue increased year over year. DOWLING & PARTN Issues Positive Outlook for MetLife Earnings
• Neutral Sentiment: A review of life-insurance companies’ second-quarter results benchmarks MetLife (NYSE: MET) against its industry peers. The article may help investors assess relative performance, but the headline does not identify a new company-specific catalyst. Life Insurance Stocks Q2 Recap: Benchmarking MetLife
• Neutral Sentiment: Multiple articles cover Bruno Mars’ concerts, schedules, weather, ticket availability and fan experience at MetLife Stadium. Although potentially relevant to the stadium’s venue business, MetLife, Inc. is an insurance and financial-services company; the stadium’s naming rights do not make these events a material direct driver of MET shares. Bruno Mars Opens Four Nights at MetLife Tonight

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MetLife stock opened at $94.44 on Friday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $92.41 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.17. MetLife, Inc. has a 52 week low of $67.33 and a 52 week high of $100.93. The company has a market capitalization of $60.77 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.09, a PEG ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a quick ratio of 0.20, a current ratio of 0.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.13. The firm had revenue of $13.52 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $19.67 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 23.39% and a net margin of 4.57%.The firm’s revenue was up 10.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.02 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.72 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 8th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.5925 per share. This represents a $2.37 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, August 4th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 45.40%.

MetLife declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, August 5th that authorizes the company to buyback $3.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 4.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Company 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.