Morgan Stanley Raises MetLife (NYSE:MET) Price Target to $82.00

MetLife (NYSE:MET) had its price objective hoisted by Morgan Stanley from $80.00 to $82.00 in a report published on Monday, Benzinga reports. They currently have an overweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of MetLife from $87.00 to $82.00 and set a buy rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of MetLife from a neutral rating to a buy rating and boosted their target price for the company from $70.00 to $80.00 in a research note on Monday, January 8th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of MetLife from $83.00 to $86.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of MetLife from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 10th. Finally, Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of MetLife from $74.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an overweight rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and a consensus target price of $79.23.

MetLife Stock Down 0.0 %

MetLife stock opened at $68.92 on Monday. MetLife has a fifty-two week low of $48.95 and a fifty-two week high of $74.68. The stock has a market cap of $49.83 billion, a PE ratio of 37.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 1.04. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $70.98 and its 200 day simple moving average is $66.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.16 and a current ratio of 0.16.

MetLife (NYSE:MET) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 31st. The financial services provider reported $1.93 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.95 by ($0.02). MetLife had a return on equity of 19.48% and a net margin of 2.36%. The firm had revenue of $18.72 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.07 billion. Research analysts predict that MetLife will post 8.71 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 hyperlink. In other MetLife news, EVP Bill Pappas sold 27,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.27, for a total value of $1,951,290.00. Following the completion of the transaction, 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 filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Ramy Tadros sold 4,026 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 directly owns 146,981 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,567,933.90. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.32% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On MetLife

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. FWL Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in MetLife in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC boosted its stake in shares of MetLife by 73.3% in the 1st quarter. GoalVest Advisory LLC now owns 390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 165 shares in the last quarter. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 3rd quarter valued at $25,000. Finally, Studio Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of MetLife in the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 89.81% of the company’s stock.

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.