KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) Reaches New 52-Week High Following Dividend Announcement

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday following a dividend announcement from the company. The company traded as high as $23.87 and last traded at $23.8320, with a volume of 401779 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $23.53.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a dividend of $0.205 per share. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. KeyCorp’s payout ratio is currently 50.31%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Susquehanna upped their target price on shares of KeyCorp from $300.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a “positive” rating in a report on Monday, May 18th. Truist Financial lifted their price target on shares of KeyCorp from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of KeyCorp in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on shares of KeyCorp from $24.00 to $27.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on KeyCorp from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $47.34.

KeyCorp Trading Down 1.8%

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $22.29 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.52. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.44 billion, a PE ratio of 14.46, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.75 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.83.

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.41 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $1.95 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. KeyCorp had a net margin of 17.03% and a return on equity of 10.80%. KeyCorp’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.38 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that KeyCorp will post 1.82 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

KeyCorp declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, May 13th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 13% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insider Activity at KeyCorp

In other news, insider Angela G. Mago sold 22,826 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $21.66, for a total transaction of $494,411.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 281,564 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,098,676.24. This represents a 7.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of KeyCorp

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Maseco LLP acquired a new position in shares of KeyCorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. DV Equities LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KeyCorp during the fourth quarter worth $27,000. GoalVest Advisory LLC acquired a new stake in shares of KeyCorp during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Smithfield Trust Co purchased a new position in KeyCorp in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new position in KeyCorp in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. 79.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About KeyCorp

KeyCorp is a bank holding company headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, that operates through its primary banking subsidiary, KeyBank. It provides a broad range of banking and financial services to individual consumers, small businesses, middle-market companies and large corporations. KeyBank’s offerings span traditional deposit and lending products as well as more specialized financial solutions designed for commercial and institutional clients.

The company’s product and service mix includes retail banking products such as checking and savings accounts, consumer and residential mortgage lending, and auto financing.