MetLife (NYSE:MET) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

MetLife (NYSE:MET) released its earnings results on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $1.83 EPS for the quarter, meeting analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.83, Briefing.com reports. The company had revenue of $17.02 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.73 billion. MetLife had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 2.36%. MetLife’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.52 earnings per share.

MetLife Trading Down 2.3 %

Shares of MET stock traded down $1.65 on Thursday, reaching $70.23. 6,294,012 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,562,284. MetLife has a 1-year low of $48.95 and a 1-year high of $74.68. The stock has a market cap of $50.08 billion, a P/E ratio of 39.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 1.03. The company has a quick ratio of 0.16, a current ratio of 0.16 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $71.61 and a two-hundred day moving average of $67.38.

MetLife Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 11th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 7th will be paid a dividend of $0.545 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 6th. This is a boost from MetLife’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.52. This represents a $2.18 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.10%. MetLife’s payout ratio is currently 113.66%.

Insider Activity at MetLife

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

MET has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group lowered their price target 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 price target on MetLife from $80.00 to $82.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 15th. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on MetLife from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of MetLife from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price objective for the company from $70.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of MetLife from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 10th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, MetLife has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.23.

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.