Morgan Stanley Issues Positive Forecast for MetLife (NYSE:MET) Stock Price

MetLife (NYSE:MET) had its target price lifted by equities researchers at Morgan Stanley from $101.00 to $109.00 in a note issued to investors on Friday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage presently has an “overweight” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. Morgan Stanley’s price target points to a potential upside of 28.26% from the company’s current price.

Several other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on shares of MetLife from $97.00 to $99.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Barclays reduced their price target on shares of MetLife from $96.00 to $95.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods dropped their price target on shares of MetLife from $100.00 to $98.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 12th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of MetLife in a research report on Thursday, January 23rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 price target for the company. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of MetLife from $86.00 to $88.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eleven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $94.58.

MetLife Trading Up 1.1 %

NYSE MET traded up $0.93 during trading on Friday, hitting $84.98. The stock had a trading volume of 929,151 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,477,137. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.84 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.24, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.07. MetLife has a one year low of $67.30 and a one year high of $89.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $83.56 and a 200 day simple moving average of $81.72.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.13 by ($0.05). MetLife had a return on equity of 20.42% and a net margin of 6.19%. Sell-side analysts predict that MetLife will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Institutional Trading of MetLife

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Ball & Co Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of MetLife in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $25,000. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in MetLife by 244.4% during the third quarter. MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC now owns 310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 220 shares in the last quarter. Transce3nd LLC acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. raised its position in shares of MetLife by 131.9% in the 3rd quarter. Carmichael Hill & Associates Inc. now owns 327 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 186 shares during the period. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $30,000. 94.99% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About MetLife

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.