Short Interest in KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) Rises By 5.3%

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) was the target of a large increase in short interest in March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 28,000,000 shares, an increase of 5.3% from the March 15th total of 26,590,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 16,170,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 1.7 days. Approximately 3.0% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on KEY. Piper Sandler boosted their target price on shares of KeyCorp from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, January 26th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of KeyCorp from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, April 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of KeyCorp from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on shares of KeyCorp from $16.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Finally, Stephens upgraded shares of KeyCorp from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 20th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $15.53.

KeyCorp Price Performance

Shares of KEY opened at $14.43 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $14.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $13.35. KeyCorp has a fifty-two week low of $8.53 and a fifty-two week high of $15.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.38 billion, a PE ratio of 16.21 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86.

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.02. KeyCorp had a net margin of 8.61% and a return on equity of 10.63%. The firm had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.53 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.38 EPS. Equities analysts predict that KeyCorp will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other KeyCorp news, insider Angela G. Mago sold 3,405 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.24, for a total value of $48,487.20. Following the sale, the insider now owns 214,630 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,056,331.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, CAO Douglas M. Schosser sold 3,326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.00, for a total value of $46,564.00. Following the sale, the chief accounting officer now directly owns 19,795 shares in the company, valued at approximately $277,130. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Angela G. Mago sold 3,405 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.24, for a total transaction of $48,487.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 214,630 shares in the company, valued at $3,056,331.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 21,442 shares of company stock worth $303,914 in the last 90 days. 0.67% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KeyCorp

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of KEY. Ontario Teachers Pension Plan Board purchased a new stake in KeyCorp during the third quarter valued at approximately $274,773,000. Wells Fargo & Company MN lifted its position in KeyCorp by 324.7% during the second quarter. Wells Fargo & Company MN now owns 14,316,581 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $132,285,000 after acquiring an additional 10,945,274 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in KeyCorp during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $128,203,000. BlackRock Inc. lifted its position in KeyCorp by 10.3% during the first quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 89,759,881 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,123,794,000 after acquiring an additional 8,391,787 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its position in KeyCorp by 140.1% during the second quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 9,698,780 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $89,617,000 after acquiring an additional 5,659,750 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.69% of the company’s stock.

KeyCorp Company Profile

KeyCorp operates as the holding company for KeyBank National Association that provides various retail and commercial banking products and services in the United States. It operates in two segments, Consumer Bank and Commercial Bank. The company offers various deposits, investment products and services; commercial leasing, investment management, consumer finance; and personal finance and financial wellness, student loan refinancing, mortgage and home equity, lending, credit card, treasury, business advisory, wealth management, asset management, cash management, portfolio management, and trust and related services to individuals and small and medium-sized businesses.