Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Purchases 290,734 Shares of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET)

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET) by 4.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 6,434,737 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 290,734 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned about 0.93% of MetLife worth $526,869,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. United Asset Strategies Inc. grew its stake in MetLife by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. United Asset Strategies Inc. now owns 10,933 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $895,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. boosted its stake in MetLife by 1.0% during the fourth 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 period. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. increased its position in MetLife by 2.1% during the fourth quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. now owns 6,044 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $495,000 after acquiring an additional 126 shares during the last quarter. Davis R M Inc. raised its stake in shares of MetLife by 4.2% in the fourth 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 period. Finally, Daymark Wealth Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 3.0% during the 4th quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,091 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $417,000 after purchasing an additional 149 shares during the period. 94.99% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

MetLife Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MET opened at $72.49 on Friday. MetLife, Inc. has a one year low of $65.21 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 firm has a fifty day moving average of $79.19 and a 200 day moving average of $82.12. The firm has a market cap of $49.38 billion, a PE ratio of 12.14, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 0.89.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last issued 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that MetLife, Inc. will post 9.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have issued reports on the stock. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $95.00 to $88.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 11th. StockNews.com downgraded MetLife from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 9th. UBS Group lifted their target price on MetLife from $94.00 to $98.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of MetLife from $97.00 to $91.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of MetLife from $88.00 to $86.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 2nd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $92.46.

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.