UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC Increases Position in MetLife, Inc. $MET

UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC grew its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 5.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 6,026,518 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 336,794 shares during the quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC owned 0.94% of MetLife worth $509,904,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in MetLife in the 2nd quarter valued at $26,000. Activest Wealth Management grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 205.8% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 315 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 212 shares during the last quarter. Burk Holdings LLC purchased a new position in MetLife in the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. Garton & Associates Financial Advisors LLC purchased a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management bought a new stake in MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have commented on the stock. Evercore restated a “mixed” rating on shares of MetLife in a research note on Monday, August 24th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on MetLife from $87.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 22nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on MetLife from $105.00 to $108.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 11th. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on MetLife from $103.00 to $111.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, August 24th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded MetLife from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, June 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eleven have given a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, MetLife currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus target price of $102.21.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET opened at $96.57 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.52, a quick ratio of 0.20 and a current ratio of 0.20. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $93.39 and a 200-day moving average price of $82.88. MetLife, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $67.33 and a fifty-two week high of $100.93. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.14 billion, a PE ratio of 18.50, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 0.78.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.43 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.13. The company had revenue of $13.52 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.67 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 4.57% and a return on equity of 23.39%. MetLife’s revenue was up 10.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.02 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.74 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

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

MetLife declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, August 5th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to buy up to 4.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

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.