Scotia Capital Inc. Cuts Stock Holdings in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Scotia Capital Inc. lowered its stake in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 4.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 55,132 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,825 shares during the quarter. Scotia Capital Inc.’s holdings in MetLife were worth $4,515,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. United Asset Strategies Inc. increased its position in MetLife by 1.1% in the fourth quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 10,933 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $895,000 after purchasing an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. increased its holdings in shares of MetLife by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 11,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $978,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of MetLife by 2.1% during the 4th quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 6,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $495,000 after buying an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Davis R M Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of MetLife by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Davis R M Inc. now owns 3,148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $258,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daymark Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in MetLife by 3.0% in the fourth quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,091 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $417,000 after acquiring an additional 149 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.99% of the company’s stock.

MetLife Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of NYSE MET opened at $71.25 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $80.32 and a 200 day moving average price of $82.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $48.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.94, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.89. MetLife, Inc. has a 52-week low of $65.21 and a 52-week 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.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 5th. The financial services provider reported $2.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 expect that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on MetLife from $88.00 to $86.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods decreased their price target on MetLife from $98.00 to $95.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. StockNews.com lowered shares of MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 9th. BMO Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of MetLife in a research note on Thursday, January 23rd. They issued a “market perform” rating and a $97.00 target price on the stock. Finally, UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $92.46.

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.