Kestra Advisory Services LLC Increases Stock Holdings in KeyCorp $KEY

Kestra Advisory Services LLC boosted its stake in KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) by 3.9% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,128,653 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 42,326 shares during the period. Kestra Advisory Services LLC’s holdings in KeyCorp were worth $22,629,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

KeyCorp Stock Up 0.9%

KEY stock traded up $0.22 on Friday, reaching $23.32. 11,117,303 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 10,283,393. KeyCorp has a one year low of $16.47 and a one year high of $23.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.62, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The company has a market cap of $25.17 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.73 and a beta of 1.02. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $22.13 and a 200-day simple moving average of $21.44.

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) last released its earnings results 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 business had revenue of $1.95 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.38 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that KeyCorp will post 1.82 earnings per share for the current year.

KeyCorp Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 2nd were given a $0.205 dividend. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, June 2nd. KeyCorp’s payout ratio is currently 50.31%.

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

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts recently issued reports on KEY shares. Truist Financial increased 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 reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of KeyCorp in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird upped their target price on KeyCorp from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on KeyCorp from $22.50 to $24.50 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Susquehanna increased their target price on KeyCorp from $300.00 to $415.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and seven have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $47.34.

Insider Activity

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

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.