Geode Capital Management LLC Acquires 158,107 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Geode Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 1.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 11,931,536 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 158,107 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC owned approximately 1.72% of MetLife worth $973,901,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. United Asset Strategies Inc. raised its stake in MetLife by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 10,933 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $895,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 11,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $978,000 after purchasing an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its position in MetLife by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 6,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $495,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Davis R M Inc. lifted its stake in MetLife by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 3,148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $258,000 after purchasing an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daymark Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in MetLife by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,091 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $417,000 after buying an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently commented on the company. Piper Sandler increased their price target on MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 28th. Barclays cut their price target on MetLife from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on MetLife from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut 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. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, MetLife currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.85.

MetLife Stock Performance

MET stock opened at $82.61 on Thursday. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $67.30 and a 1-year high of $89.05. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $82.98 and a 200-day moving average price of $83.01. The firm has a market cap of $56.28 billion, a PE ratio of 13.84, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.04.

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

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were issued a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.64%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife’s payout ratio is 36.52%.

MetLife Company 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.