NewEdge Wealth LLC Grows Stock Position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

NewEdge Wealth LLC raised its holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 18.1% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 4,011 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 615 shares during the quarter. NewEdge Wealth LLC’s holdings in MetLife were worth $265,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. FWL Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at about $26,000. Quintet Private Bank Europe S.A. acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. Planned Solutions Inc. acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the second quarter valued at about $28,000. Finally, Studio Investment Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. 89.81% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In other news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total value of $1,951,290.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 57,768 shares in the company, valued at $4,174,893.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total value of $1,951,290.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 57,768 shares in the company, valued at $4,174,893.36. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on 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 transaction, the insider now owns 146,981 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,567,933.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently commented on MET shares. Piper Sandler raised their target price on MetLife from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on MetLife from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 10th. UBS Group dropped 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. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, April 11th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $79.23.

MetLife Stock Performance

Shares of MET stock opened at $69.95 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $50.58 billion, a P/E ratio of 38.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.04. The business’s 50 day moving average is $71.05 and its two-hundred day moving average is $66.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.16, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. MetLife, Inc. has a 12-month low of $48.95 and a 12-month high of $74.68.

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

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.