State Street Corporation (NYSE:STT) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of State Street Corporation (NYSE:STT) have received an average rating of “Moderate Buy” from the fifteen brokerages that are covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have issued a buy rating and three have assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $155.7667.

A number of analysts recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on State Street from $155.00 to $166.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Zacks Research upgraded State Street from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on State Street from $152.00 to $168.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Wall Street Zen upgraded State Street from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, January 17th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on State Street from $135.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th.

State Street Trading Down 0.6%

Shares of STT stock opened at $152.89 on Friday. State Street has a fifty-two week low of $94.19 and a fifty-two week high of $156.18. The stock has a market cap of $42.32 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.84 and a beta of 1.45. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $136.77 and a 200-day simple moving average of $129.56. The company has a quick ratio of 0.57, a current ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04.

State Street (NYSE:STT) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, April 17th. The asset manager reported $2.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.20. State Street had a net margin of 13.47% and a return on equity of 14.22%. The company had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.04 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that State Street will post 12.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

State Street Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 13th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 1st were paid a $0.84 dividend. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, April 1st. State Street’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 34.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other State Street news, EVP John Plansky sold 16,100 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.32, for a total value of $2,001,552.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 56,162 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,982,059.84. This trade represents a 22.28% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Michael L. Richards sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $153.89, for a total value of $461,670.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 43,522 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,697,600.58. The trade was a 6.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 28,711 shares of company stock valued at $3,933,032. Insiders own 0.27% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On State Street

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Wilkerson Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in State Street during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. JPL Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in State Street during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Phillip James Consulting Co. acquired a new position in State Street during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Whipplewood Advisors LLC acquired a new position in State Street during the 1st quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in State Street during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $35,000. 87.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About State Street

State Street Corporation is a global financial services company that provides a range of investment servicing, investment management and investment research and trading services to institutional investors. Its principal activities include custody and fund administration, securities lending, performance and risk analytics, trading and execution services, and foreign exchange. The company also offers investment management through State Street Global Advisors, a major provider of exchange-traded funds and institutional investment strategies.

State Street serves a broad client base of asset managers, insurance companies, pension funds, endowments, and other institutions across North America, Europe, Asia and other global markets.