Hedge Funds Aren’t Crazy About Metlife Inc (MET) Anymore

Because Metlife Inc (NYSE:MET) has experienced a bearish sentiment from the entirety of the hedge funds we track, logic holds that there is a sect of hedge funds who sold off their positions entirely heading into Q4. Intriguingly, Andreas Halvorsen’s Viking Global sold off the largest investment of all the hedgies tracked by Insider Monkey, valued at about $659.6 million in call options., and Gordy Holterman and Derek Dunn’s Overland Advisors was right behind this move, as the fund cut about $47.3 million worth. These moves are intriguing to say the least, as aggregate hedge fund interest dropped by 8 funds heading into Q4.

Let’s also examine hedge fund activity in other stocks – not necessarily in the same industry as Metlife Inc (NYSE:MET) but similarly valued. We will take a look at National Grid plc (ADR) (NYSE:NGG), Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Grp, Inc. (ADR) (NYSE:SMFG), Texas Instruments Incorporated (NASDAQ:TXN), and BHP Billiton Limited (ADR) (NYSE:BHP). This group of stocks’ market valuations are similar to MET’s market valuation.

As you can see these stocks had an average of 19 hedge funds with bullish positions and the average amount invested in these stocks was $261 million. That figure was $1.72 billion in MET’s case. Texas Instruments Incorporated (NASDAQ:TXN) is the most popular stock in this table with a total of 35 funds holding long positions, while National Grid plc (ADR) (NYSE:NGG) is the least popular one. Compared to these stocks, Metlife Inc (NYSE:MET) is more popular among hedge funds. Considering that hedge funds are fond of this stock in relation to its market cap peers, it may be a good idea to analyze it in detail and potentially include it in your portfolio.