MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Acquired by Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC

Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC lifted its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 255,240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,828 shares during the quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $21,052,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. PFG Investments LLC increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 8.9% during the third quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 6,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $525,000 after buying an additional 520 shares during the period. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 4.1% during the third quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC now owns 6,917 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $570,000 after buying an additional 274 shares during the period. Arkadios Wealth Advisors increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 2.8% during the third quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 58,805 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $4,850,000 after buying an additional 1,604 shares during the period. Forsta AP Fonden increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 10.5% during the third quarter. Forsta AP Fonden now owns 198,700 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,389,000 after buying an additional 18,800 shares during the period. Finally, Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its stake in shares of MetLife by 22.8% during the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 36,817 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,037,000 after buying an additional 6,833 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MET opened at $82.39 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.16 and a quick ratio of 0.16. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $79.81 and a 200 day moving average price of $74.52. MetLife, Inc. has a 1-year low of $57.91 and a 1-year high of $86.94. The company has a market cap of $58.59 billion, a PE ratio of 28.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.04.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The financial services provider reported $2.28 earnings per share 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 firm had revenue of $17.82 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.57 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.94 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.58 EPS for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be issued a $0.545 dividend. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.65%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 5th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 74.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on MET. StockNews.com lowered shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Bank of America dropped their price target on shares of MetLife from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. Piper Sandler increased their price target on shares of MetLife from $85.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, October 2nd. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of MetLife in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $92.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $88.46.

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.