MetLife (NYSE:MET) Issues Earnings Results

MetLife (NYSE:MET) released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.13 by ($0.05), Zacks reports. MetLife had a return on equity of 20.01% and a net margin of 5.27%.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of MET traded up $0.29 during trading hours on Wednesday, reaching $84.92. 5,285,281 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,553,012. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. The firm’s 50 day simple moving average is $83.96 and its 200-day simple moving average is $80.68. The stock has a market cap of $58.80 billion, a PE ratio of 17.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.07. MetLife has a 12 month low of $65.65 and a 12 month high of $89.05.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be issued a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 4th. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.57%. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 43.95%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on MET shares. Barclays increased their price target on MetLife from $90.00 to $96.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. StockNews.com lowered MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of MetLife in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price target on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of MetLife from $93.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $90.46.

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.