AIA Group Ltd Acquires 6,818 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

AIA Group Ltd lifted its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 101.4% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 13,539 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 6,818 shares during the quarter. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in MetLife were worth $1,117,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the business. National Bank of Canada FI boosted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 54.9% in the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 371,062 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,983,000 after acquiring an additional 131,538 shares during the period. PFG Investments LLC grew its holdings in MetLife by 8.9% during the 3rd quarter. PFG Investments LLC now owns 6,360 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $525,000 after buying an additional 520 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of MetLife during the first quarter valued at about $1,053,000. Entropy Technologies LP lifted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 38.3% in the first quarter. Entropy Technologies LP now owns 30,473 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,258,000 after buying an additional 8,440 shares in the last quarter. Finally, M&G Plc purchased a new position in MetLife during the second quarter valued at approximately $2,346,000. 89.81% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MetLife stock opened at $81.03 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $56.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a fifty day moving average of $81.03 and a 200-day moving average of $75.19. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $59.24 and a 52-week high of $86.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be paid a dividend of $0.545 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 5th. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.69%. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 43.95%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have issued reports on MET. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Citigroup boosted their target price on MetLife from $83.00 to $89.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 23rd. TD Cowen started coverage on MetLife in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. Bank of America cut their price objective on MetLife from $99.00 to $96.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, August 1st. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price 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. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $88.46.

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.