Skba Capital Management LLC Trims Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Skba Capital Management LLC lowered its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 12.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 153,650 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 21,000 shares during the period. MetLife accounts for 2.0% of Skba Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Skba Capital Management LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $12,581,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MET. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new stake in MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at about $32,000. Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC purchased a new stake in MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Graney & King LLC acquired a new position in MetLife during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Values First Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in MetLife during the fourth quarter worth approximately $36,000. Finally, Bank Julius Baer & Co. Ltd Zurich acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $48,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

MET has been the topic of several research reports. Wells Fargo & Company increased their target price on MetLife from $92.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 19th. StockNews.com downgraded MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a report on Friday, March 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 12th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of MetLife from $101.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, February 28th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $94.58.

MetLife Stock Down 4.6 %

Shares of NYSE MET opened at $79.19 on Monday. 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 1 year low of $67.30 and a 1 year high of $89.05. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $83.29 and its 200-day simple moving average is $82.94. The firm has a market cap of $53.95 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.27, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.04.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a net margin of 6.19% and a return on equity of 20.42%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th were issued a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.75%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio is currently 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.