MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) Shares Bought by Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd

Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd grew its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 42.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 4,745 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,403 shares during the quarter. Aster Capital Management DIFC Ltd’s holdings in MetLife were worth $389,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Russell Investments Group Ltd. lifted its stake in shares of MetLife by 4.9% in the 4th quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 1,204,867 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $98,623,000 after purchasing an additional 56,320 shares during the last quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. boosted its position in shares of MetLife by 4.9% during the 4th quarter. Wedbush Securities Inc. now owns 11,850 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $970,000 after purchasing an additional 551 shares during the period. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC increased its holdings in MetLife by 7.0% in the 4th quarter. Grantham Mayo Van Otterloo & Co. LLC now owns 15,864 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,299,000 after purchasing an additional 1,044 shares during the last quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc. purchased a new stake in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $5,151,000. Finally, Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in MetLife during the fourth quarter worth $14,002,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MET has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a report on Friday, March 7th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on MetLife from $92.00 to $94.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. BMO Capital Markets began 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 for the company. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on shares of MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their target price on MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 12th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, MetLife has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $94.85.

MetLife Stock Down 9.5 %

MetLife stock opened at $68.71 on Monday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $82.41 and a 200-day simple moving average of $82.96. The company has a market capitalization of $46.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.51, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.89. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. MetLife, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $67.10 and a fifty-two week high of $89.05.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 20.42%. Equities research analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were paid a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.17%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is presently 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.