Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. Has $6.50 Million Stock Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 12.2% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 92,596 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 10,057 shares during the quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $6,499,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of MET. CHURCHILL MANAGEMENT Corp acquired a new position in MetLife during the 1st quarter valued at $7,012,000. National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in shares of MetLife by 54.9% during the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 371,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,983,000 after buying an additional 131,538 shares during the last quarter. Stifel Financial Corp grew its position in MetLife by 1.8% during the fourth quarter. Stifel Financial Corp now owns 2,005,738 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $132,641,000 after buying an additional 35,782 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC acquired a new stake in MetLife during the first quarter worth about $1,053,000. Finally, International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its stake in MetLife by 2,313.7% during the first quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 104,877 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $7,772,000 after acquiring an additional 100,532 shares during the period. 89.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET stock opened at $75.75 on Thursday. MetLife, Inc. has a 52 week low of $57.91 and a 52 week high of $79.34. The stock has a market capitalization of $53.87 billion, a PE ratio of 26.03, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $72.41 and its 200-day moving average is $71.65.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by $0.15. MetLife had a net margin of 4.23% and a return on equity of 21.41%. The firm had revenue of $17.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.57 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.94 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 10th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 6th will be paid a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, August 6th. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.91%.

MetLife declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 1st that permits the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire up to 6% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Argus lifted their price objective on MetLife from $77.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 22nd. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $85.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, August 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $81.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their price objective on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $85.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. One 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, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $83.00.

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.