Baird Financial Group Inc. Sells 8,743 Shares of MetLife, Inc. $MET

Baird Financial Group Inc. reduced its holdings in shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 1.6% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 539,085 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 8,743 shares during the quarter. Baird Financial Group Inc. owned 0.08% of MetLife worth $43,353,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Quaker Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in MetLife by 198.2% during the 2nd quarter. Quaker Wealth Management LLC now owns 333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 672 shares during the period. MTM Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of MetLife during the second quarter valued at approximately $37,000. GFG Capital LLC bought a new position in MetLife during the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Abound Wealth Management boosted its holdings in MetLife by 652.3% in the second quarter. Abound Wealth Management now owns 489 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 424 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legend Financial Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in MetLife in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $40,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of MET stock opened at $77.97 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.18 and a quick ratio of 0.18. MetLife, Inc. has a one year low of $65.21 and a one year high of $88.09. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $78.73 and its 200-day moving average price is $78.71. The company has a market capitalization of $51.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.68, a PEG ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 0.76.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, November 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.37 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $12.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.64 billion. MetLife had a net margin of 5.30% and a return on equity of 21.00%. MetLife’s quarterly revenue was down 5.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.95 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

MetLife Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 9th. Investors of record on Tuesday, November 4th will be paid a dividend of $0.5675 per share. This represents a $2.27 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, November 4th. MetLife’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 42.75%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on MET shares. Weiss Ratings cut MetLife from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on MetLife from $96.00 to $92.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, November 7th. Cowen restated a “buy” rating on shares of MetLife in a research note on Friday, August 22nd. Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, October 7th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of MetLife from $93.00 to $98.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $94.60.

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.