Pinebridge Investments L.P. Trims Stock Holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Pinebridge Investments L.P. lowered its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 21.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 36,525 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 10,231 shares during the quarter. Pinebridge Investments L.P.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $2,415,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of MET. Cibc World Markets Corp boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 42.6% during the fourth quarter. Cibc World Markets Corp now owns 144,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,568,000 after purchasing an additional 43,232 shares during the period. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado lifted its holdings in MetLife by 565.1% during the 4th quarter. Public Employees Retirement Association of Colorado now owns 94,658 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,260,000 after buying an additional 80,426 shares in the last quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC boosted its position in MetLife by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Cetera Advisor Networks LLC now owns 104,094 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,884,000 after buying an additional 4,857 shares during the period. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC grew its stake in MetLife by 104.1% in the 4th quarter. Tower Research Capital LLC TRC now owns 90,446 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,981,000 after acquiring an additional 46,127 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lake Street Advisors Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth approximately $268,000. Institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

NYSE MET opened at $70.06 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $52.97 and a 12-month high of $74.68. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $71.76 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $69.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.58. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.08, a P/E/G ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 1.12.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $1.83 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, meeting the consensus estimate of $1.83. The company had revenue of $17.02 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.73 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.39% and a net margin of 3.50%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.52 EPS. Analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife announced that its board has authorized a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 1st that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to reacquire up to 6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be given a $0.545 dividend. This is a positive change from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 6th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 74.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other MetLife news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total transaction of $1,951,290.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 57,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,174,893.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. In related news, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of MetLife stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.90, for a total transaction of $289,469.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 146,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $10,567,933.90. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total transaction of $1,951,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 57,768 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,174,893.36. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.31% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MET has been the subject of a number of research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their price target on MetLife from $87.00 to $86.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, May 7th. Argus increased their price target on MetLife from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Piper Sandler decreased their price objective on MetLife from $85.00 to $82.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Monday, May 6th. StockNews.com cut shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, May 11th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, May 10th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $79.08.

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.