Company Update: MetLife Inc (NYSE:MET) – MetLife ruling bolsters other firms arguing systemic unimportance

[Reuters] – Metlife, Prudential, AIG and GE Capital are the only four non-banks that have been deemed systemically important financial institutions, or SIFIs, by the Financial Stability Oversight Council. BlackRock, Fidelity and Vanguard have not been assigned systemic importance, but analysts and regulatory experts say they are large enough to merit consideration. Read more on this. MetLife, Inc. (MET) , currently valued at $48.19B, started trading this morning at $44.87. During the trading session, MET traded between $43.85 to $45.10 and has traded between $35.00 and $58.23 over the past 12 months. MET shares are currently priced at 7.79x this year’s forecasted earnings, which makes them relatively inexpensive compared to the industry’s 14.52x earnings multiple for the same period. And for income investors, the company pays shareholders $1.50 per share annually in dividends, yielding 3.55%. According to a consensus of 16 analysts, the earnings estimate of $1.39 per share would be $0.05 worse than the year-ago quarter and a $0.05 sequential decrease. Investors should also note that the full-year EPS estimate of $5.74 is a $0.88 better when compared to the previous year’s annual results. The quarterly earnings estimate is predicated on a consensus revenue forecast of $17.21 Billion. If reported, that would be a 1.06% increase over the year-ago quarter. In terms of ratings, Raymond James upgraded MET from Mkt Perform to Strong Buy (Jan 22, 2016). Previously, Macquarie upgraded MET from Neutral to Outperform. The average price target for MET shares by the analysts covering it is $52.43, which is 16.85% above where the stock opened. See more in (NYSE:MET) Similar Articles: Company Update: MetLife Inc (NYSE:MET) – MetLife Hong Kong Achieves Strong Agent Productivity Fueling Solid Business Growth Company Update: MetLife Inc (NYSE:MET) – MetLife Recognized as a Top Company for Female Executives Stock Update: MetLife Inc (NYSE:MET) – MetLife Named ‘2015 Best Life Insurance Company in Turkey’