Savant Capital LLC Buys 1,152 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Savant Capital LLC increased its position in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 4.7% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 25,488 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,152 shares during the quarter. Savant Capital LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $2,087,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 244.4% in the 3rd quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 131.9% in the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 327 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 186 shares in the last quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC grew its holdings in shares of MetLife by 374.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 351 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 277 shares during the last quarter. Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new position in MetLife during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $30,000. Finally, Retirement Wealth Solutions LLC bought a new position in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $32,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MET stock opened at $82.77 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. MetLife, Inc. has a 52 week low of $67.04 and a 52 week high of $89.05. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $83.59 and a 200-day moving average of $80.98. The company has a market cap of $57.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.07.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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%. On average, equities analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.63 earnings per share for the current year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 4th will be given a dividend of $0.545 per share. This represents a $2.18 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.63%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 4th. MetLife’s payout ratio is 36.52%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MET shares. Barclays reduced their price objective on MetLife from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, February 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com lowered shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, January 9th. BMO Capital Markets began coverage on MetLife in a report on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price objective for the company. Finally, TD Cowen raised their target price on MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $92.17.

MetLife Company 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.