NEOS Investment Management LLC Buys 8,709 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

NEOS Investment Management LLC increased its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 31.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 36,601 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,709 shares during the quarter. NEOS Investment Management LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $2,997,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in MetLife during the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Values First Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in MetLife during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, Golden State Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the fourth quarter worth approximately $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

MET has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased 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. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, February 28th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 19th. Finally, Cowen reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a research note on Friday, March 7th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.58.

MetLife Price Performance

MET opened at $79.19 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $83.29 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $82.83. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.95 billion, a PE ratio of 13.27, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.04. MetLife, Inc. has a 52 week low of $67.30 and a 52 week high of $89.05. 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 (NYSE:MET) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. As a group, analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Investors of record on Tuesday, February 4th were given a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.75%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is 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.