First Trust Advisors LP Raises Position in KeyCorp $KEY

First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) by 76.6% during the 1st quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 2,951,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,280,125 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP’s holdings in KeyCorp were worth $59,177,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in KEY. Maseco LLP purchased a new position in KeyCorp in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. DV Equities LLC bought a new position in KeyCorp in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Smithfield Trust Co purchased a new stake in KeyCorp during the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Kelleher Financial Advisors purchased a new stake in KeyCorp during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, Richardson Financial Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of KeyCorp in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.69% of the company’s stock.

KeyCorp Price Performance

NYSE KEY opened at $22.64 on Friday. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $22.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $21.60. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.16, a PEG ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.84 and a quick ratio of 0.83. KeyCorp has a 1-year low of $16.47 and a 1-year high of $24.07.

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 21st. The financial services provider reported $0.44 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.42 by $0.02. KeyCorp had a return on equity of 11.23% and a net margin of 17.83%.The company had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.97 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.35 earnings per share. KeyCorp’s revenue was up 6.7% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts predict that KeyCorp will post 1.83 earnings per share for the current year.

KeyCorp Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, September 1st will be given a $0.205 dividend. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 1st. KeyCorp’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 47.67%.

KeyCorp declared that its board has initiated a share repurchase program 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 buy up to 13% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

KEY has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Stephens assumed coverage on KeyCorp in a report on Monday, June 15th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $26.00 price target on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their target price on KeyCorp from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on shares of KeyCorp from $22.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their target price on shares of KeyCorp from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of KeyCorp from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Thirteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $49.14.

Insider Transactions at KeyCorp

In other KeyCorp news, insider Angela G. Mago sold 22,826 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.66, for a total transaction of $494,411.16. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 281,564 shares in the company, valued at $6,098,676.24. The trade was a 7.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

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.