Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd Acquires 624 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its stake in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 60,923 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 624 shares during the quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd’s holdings in MetLife were worth $4,029,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the stock. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its position in MetLife by 678.4% in the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 287,311 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,000,000 after acquiring an additional 250,402 shares during the period. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd increased its position in shares of MetLife by 19.2% during the 4th quarter. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd now owns 1,824,596 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $120,661,000 after purchasing an additional 293,925 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in MetLife by 9.9% during the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 2,664,012 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $176,304,000 after purchasing an additional 240,564 shares during the last quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH boosted its position in MetLife by 13.1% in the fourth quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 742,302 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,088,000 after buying an additional 86,091 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC grew its stake in MetLife by 50.0% during the third quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 8,856 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $557,000 after buying an additional 2,952 shares during the last quarter. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Trading Up 1.2 %

NYSE MET opened at $71.96 on Tuesday. MetLife, Inc. has a 12 month low of $48.95 and a 12 month high of $74.68. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $71.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $66.94. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The company has a market capitalization of $52.03 billion, a PE ratio of 39.32, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.04.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.93 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.95 by ($0.02). The company had revenue of $18.72 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.07 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 2.36% and a return on equity of 19.48%. Research analysts forecast that MetLife, Inc. will post 8.71 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group reduced their target price on MetLife from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, February 5th. Piper Sandler raised their target price on MetLife from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 11th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of MetLife from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $70.00 to $80.00 in a research report on Monday, January 8th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $79.23.

Insider Transactions at MetLife

In related news, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $71.90, for a total transaction of $289,469.40. Following the sale, the insider now owns 146,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,567,933.90. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In related news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total value of $1,951,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 57,768 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,174,893.36. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of MetLife stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $71.90, for a total value of $289,469.40. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 146,981 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,567,933.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

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.