KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) Reaches New 12-Month High Following Dividend Announcement

Shares of KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day 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. 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 issued a $0.205 dividend. This represents a $0.82 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.4%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 1st. KeyCorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently 50.31%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating on shares of KeyCorp in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Weiss Ratings upgraded KeyCorp from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a research report on Monday, May 11th. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their target price on KeyCorp from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. UBS Group increased their price target on shares of KeyCorp from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of KeyCorp from $26.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, May 4th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $47.34.

KeyCorp Trading Up 1.7%

The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $22.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $21.51. The firm has a market capitalization of $25.84 billion, a PE ratio of 14.69, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62.

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

KeyCorp declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, May 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 13% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other KeyCorp news, insider Angela G. Mago sold 22,826 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.66, for a total value 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. The trade was a 7.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.56% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. MCF Advisors LLC raised its holdings in KeyCorp by 31.6% during the 4th quarter. MCF Advisors LLC now owns 1,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 456 shares during the last quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC grew its holdings in KeyCorp by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Prime Capital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 28,498 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $588,000 after acquiring an additional 486 shares during the last quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. grew its holdings in KeyCorp by 19.0% in the 4th quarter. Harbour Investments Inc. now owns 3,180 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 508 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of KeyCorp by 5.4% in the first quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $206,000 after acquiring an additional 522 shares during the period. Finally, Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC increased its position in shares of KeyCorp by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Centennial Wealth Advisory LLC now owns 44,986 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $929,000 after acquiring an additional 524 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 79.69% 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.