Zacks Investment Management Has $150.93 Million Stock Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Zacks Investment Management raised its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,829,902 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 184,317 shares during the quarter. MetLife makes up about 1.3% of Zacks Investment Management’s portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Zacks Investment Management’s holdings in MetLife were worth $150,930,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in MET. Acadian Asset Management LLC increased its position in shares of MetLife by 7,837.0% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 1,129,353 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $79,250,000 after buying an additional 1,115,124 shares during the period. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife during the third quarter worth $91,771,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of MetLife by 22.4% during the second quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 5,396,274 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $378,799,000 after buying an additional 988,666 shares during the period. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. increased its position in shares of MetLife by 79.1% during the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 1,726,209 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $142,378,000 after buying an additional 762,291 shares during the period. Finally, Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. increased its position in shares of MetLife by 256.6% during the third quarter. Jacobs Levy Equity Management Inc. now owns 948,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $78,209,000 after buying an additional 682,333 shares during the period. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently weighed in on MET. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $91.00 to $90.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective 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. TD Cowen increased their target price on shares of MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, November 27th. StockNews.com upgraded MetLife from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, November 25th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on MetLife from $92.00 to $93.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Fourteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating, According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $88.62.

MetLife Stock Down 0.8 %

MET stock opened at $85.19 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $83.73 and a 200-day moving average of $76.91. MetLife, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $63.19 and a fifty-two week high of $89.05. The company has a market capitalization of $58.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.18, a PEG ratio of 0.78 and a beta of 1.06. 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 Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, December 16th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, November 5th will be paid a $0.545 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 5th. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.56%. MetLife’s payout ratio is 43.95%.

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.