Pictet Asset Management Holding SA Has $24.07 Million Stock Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA lessened its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 7.1% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 293,954 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 22,490 shares during the period. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA’s holdings in MetLife were worth $24,069,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in MetLife during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $730,716,000. Caisse Des Depots ET Consignations acquired a new position in MetLife during the fourth quarter worth $1,832,000. Blair William & Co. IL lifted its holdings in MetLife by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. Blair William & Co. IL now owns 94,737 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,757,000 after purchasing an additional 2,913 shares during the last quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P boosted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 45.4% during the 4th quarter. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P now owns 1,341 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $110,000 after buying an additional 419 shares during the period. Finally, NEOS Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in MetLife by 31.2% during the fourth quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC now owns 36,601 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,997,000 after acquiring an additional 8,709 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of MetLife in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their target price on shares of MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. Cowen reissued a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a research report on Friday, March 7th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on MetLife from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.58.

MetLife Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of NYSE:MET opened at $80.32 on Tuesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The firm has a market cap of $54.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.45, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.04. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $67.30 and a 12 month high of $89.05. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $83.16 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $82.98.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 20.42%. As a group, research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were given a dividend of $0.545 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.71%. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 36.52%.

MetLife Profile

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.