Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC Makes New Investment in KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY)

Lighthouse Investment Partners LLC bought a new position in KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The firm bought 19,306 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $331,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of KEY. Norges Bank acquired a new position in KeyCorp in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $153,235,000. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of KeyCorp by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 116,932,760 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,004,228,000 after acquiring an additional 7,754,576 shares during the last quarter. Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in KeyCorp in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $63,540,000. FMR LLC increased its holdings in KeyCorp by 7.1% in the 4th quarter. FMR LLC now owns 44,431,526 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $761,556,000 after purchasing an additional 2,938,405 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in KeyCorp during the fourth quarter worth $42,827,000. 79.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at KeyCorp

In other news, insider Mohit Ramani bought 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, April 21st. The shares were purchased at an average price of $13.75 per share, for a total transaction of $137,500.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 10,000 shares in the company, valued at $137,500. The trade was a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, Director Carlton L. Highsmith sold 5,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $16.60, for a total transaction of $83,000.00. Following the sale, the director now owns 37,177 shares in the company, valued at approximately $617,138.20. This trade represents a 11.85% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.52% of the stock is owned by insiders.

KeyCorp Price Performance

KEY stock opened at $16.48 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $15.12 and a 200-day moving average of $16.90. KeyCorp has a 12-month low of $12.73 and a 12-month high of $20.04. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.77. The company has a market cap of $18.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -54.93, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.08.

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.33 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.32 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.77 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.77 billion. KeyCorp had a positive return on equity of 8.73% and a negative net margin of 2.52%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.20 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that KeyCorp will post 1.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

KeyCorp declared that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, March 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 6% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

KeyCorp Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 13th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 27th will be given a $0.205 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, May 27th. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.98%. KeyCorp’s dividend payout ratio is presently -482.35%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KEY shares. Evercore ISI set a $17.00 price objective on KeyCorp in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Wells Fargo & Company restated an “overweight” rating on shares of KeyCorp in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on shares of KeyCorp from $20.00 to $18.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Citigroup restated a “buy” rating on shares of KeyCorp in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, TD Cowen assumed coverage on KeyCorp in a research note on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating and a $18.00 price objective on the stock. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, ten have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $18.92.

About KeyCorp

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.