KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) Short Interest Update

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) was the target of a large growth in short interest during the month of December. As of December 31st, there was short interest totalling 18,530,000 shares, a growth of 8.0% from the December 15th total of 17,150,000 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 9,510,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.9 days.

Insider Buying and Selling at KeyCorp

In related news, insider Angela G. Mago sold 15,011 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.59, for a total value of $294,065.49. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 234,582 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,595,461.38. This represents a 6.01 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Carlton L. Highsmith sold 9,000 shares of KeyCorp stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.14, for a total transaction of $154,260.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 37,864 shares in the company, valued at $648,988.96. This represents a 19.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On KeyCorp

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in KEY. Azora Capital LP bought a new position in KeyCorp in the 3rd quarter worth about $92,413,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. increased its position in shares of KeyCorp by 280.3% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 4,976,965 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $83,364,000 after purchasing an additional 3,668,168 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans raised its stake in KeyCorp by 108.3% in the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 5,852,233 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $98,025,000 after purchasing an additional 3,042,060 shares in the last quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. lifted its position in KeyCorp by 164.9% during the third quarter. BNP PARIBAS ASSET MANAGEMENT Holding S.A. now owns 4,660,680 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $78,066,000 after purchasing an additional 2,900,971 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Victory Capital Management Inc. grew its stake in KeyCorp by 279.6% in the 3rd quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 3,788,173 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $63,452,000 after buying an additional 2,790,192 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 79.69% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on KEY. DA Davidson lifted their target price on shares of KeyCorp from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, October 21st. Truist Financial assumed coverage on KeyCorp in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued a “hold” rating and a $19.00 price objective on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada raised their target price on KeyCorp from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of KeyCorp from $19.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI raised their price objective on shares of KeyCorp from $18.50 to $20.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 2nd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $19.44.

KeyCorp Price Performance

KEY stock traded up $0.48 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $18.32. 17,405,857 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,603,990. KeyCorp has a 52-week low of $12.94 and a 52-week high of $20.04. The company has a market capitalization of $18.16 billion, a P/E ratio of 1,832.30, a P/E/G ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.27. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.88 and a quick ratio of 0.88. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $18.18 and a 200-day moving average price of $17.01.

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.27 by $0.03. KeyCorp had a net margin of 0.76% and a return on equity of 8.24%. The company had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.59 billion. As a group, analysts anticipate that KeyCorp will post 1.1 earnings per share for the current year.

KeyCorp Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 14th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, March 4th will be issued a $0.205 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, March 4th. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.48%. KeyCorp’s payout ratio is currently 8,200.00%.

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.