Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Acquires Shares of 3,671 MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor acquired 3,671 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $301,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MET. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 244.4% in the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in MetLife during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Coastline Trust Co bought a new position in MetLife in the third quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have weighed in on MET shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a research note on Friday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets started coverage on shares of MetLife in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.58.

MetLife Price Performance

NYSE MET opened at $78.56 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $53.52 billion, a PE ratio of 13.16, a price-to-earnings-growth 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 firm’s 50 day moving average is $83.61 and its 200-day moving average is $82.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share 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%. Equities research analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 4th were issued 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 yield of 2.77%. MetLife’s payout ratio is 36.52%.

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.