National Pension Service Acquires 176,311 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

National Pension Service grew its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 13.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,534,390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 176,311 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service owned about 0.22% of MetLife worth $126,556,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MET. Norden Group LLC boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 152.9% in the first quarter. Norden Group LLC now owns 8,115 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $601,000 after acquiring an additional 4,906 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. lifted its position in MetLife by 4.5% during the first quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 142,540 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,564,000 after purchasing an additional 6,196 shares during the last quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP bought a new stake in MetLife during the first quarter valued at approximately $653,000. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group lifted its position in MetLife by 3.5% during the first quarter. Rehmann Capital Advisory Group now owns 7,423 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $550,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Mediolanum International Funds Ltd bought a new stake in MetLife during the first quarter valued at approximately $4,637,000. Institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on MET shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 23rd. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, August 19th. Finally, StockNews.com downgraded shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.38.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MET stock opened at $78.56 on Tuesday. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $58.89 and a 12 month high of $86.94. The stock has a market cap of $55.02 billion, a PE ratio of 15.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.71 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $80.66 and its 200-day moving average price is $74.98.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.77%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 5th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.95%.

About MetLife

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.