Axa S.A. Sells 64,285 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Axa S.A. trimmed its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 85.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 64,285 shares during the quarter. Axa S.A.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $780,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. GoalVest Advisory LLC raised its stake in MetLife by 73.3% during the first quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Bank & Trust Co bought a new position in MetLife during the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Rise Advisors LLC boosted its position in MetLife by 114.7% in the first quarter. Rise Advisors LLC now owns 556 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in MetLife by 602.5% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 562 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 482 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC raised its stake in shares of MetLife by 72.6% in the second quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 568 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 239 shares during the last quarter. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Price Performance

MET opened at $81.81 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $58.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.11, a P/E/G ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.04. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $57.91 and a 12 month high of $82.99. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $75.54 and a 200 day simple moving average of $73.12.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.13 by $0.15. MetLife had a return on equity of 21.41% and a net margin of 4.23%. The company had revenue of $17.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.57 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.94 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.68 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 6th were paid a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.66%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 6th. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 74.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have issued reports on MET. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on MetLife from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 2nd. StockNews.com raised shares of MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, September 26th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on shares of MetLife from $89.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, September 27th. Finally, Barclays assumed coverage on shares of MetLife in a research report on Wednesday, September 4th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $91.00 price objective for the company. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, MetLife currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $85.23.

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.