Raymond James Financial Initiates Coverage on M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB)

Key Points

• Raymond James initiated coverage of M&T Bank with an “outperform” rating and a $250 price target, implying approximately 15.4% upside from the prior close.
• M&T Bank exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $5.35 in EPS versus a $4.66 consensus estimate and revenue of $2.53 billion versus $2.46 billion expected.
• Despite Raymond James’ bullish view, the broader analyst consensus remains “Hold,” with 13 hold, nine buy and one sell rating and an average price target of $250.45.

Analysts at Raymond James Financial began coverage on shares of M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB - Get Free Report) in a note issued to investors on Tuesday, Marketbeat reports. The brokerage set an "outperform" rating and a $250.00 price target on the financial services provider's stock. Raymond James Financial's target price suggests a potential upside of 15.44% from the stock's previous close.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on M&T Bank from $304.00 to $301.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Wall Street Zen upgraded M&T Bank from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Monday, July 20th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on M&T Bank from $215.00 to $224.00 and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Truist Financial dropped their price target on M&T Bank from $268.00 to $250.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 23rd. Finally, Robert W. Baird increased their price objective on M&T Bank from $240.00 to $250.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 16th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, M&T Bank has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $250.45.

M&T Bank Price Performance

Shares of NYSE MTB opened at $216.57 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.53, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $236.47 and a 200 day moving average of $227.96. The firm has a market cap of $31.28 billion, a PE ratio of 11.43, a PEG ratio of 1.24 and a beta of 0.61. M&T Bank has a one year low of $174.76 and a one year high of $255.95.

M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 15th. The financial services provider reported $5.35 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $4.66 by $0.69. M&T Bank had a net margin of 22.72% and a return on equity of 11.80%. The business had revenue of $2.53 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.46 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $4.28 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that M&T Bank will post 19.4 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at M&T Bank

In related news, Director Rudina Seseri sold 623 shares of M&T Bank stock in a transaction on Friday, August 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $241.04, for a total value of $150,167.92. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 3,649 shares in the company, valued at approximately $879,554.96. This trade represents a 14.58% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO René Jones sold 19,396 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, September 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $239.35, for a total value of $4,642,432.60. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 103,831 shares in the company, valued at approximately $24,851,949.85. This trade represents a 15.74% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 20,028 shares of company stock worth $4,794,884. Insiders own 0.44% of the company's stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of New York Mellon Corp purchased a new stake in shares of M&T Bank during the 2nd quarter worth $330,978,000. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC raised its stake in M&T Bank by 2.6% in the second quarter. UBS AM a distinct business unit of UBS ASSET MANAGEMENT AMERICAS LLC now owns 1,060,517 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $252,414,000 after buying an additional 26,486 shares in the last quarter. Davis Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in M&T Bank during the 2nd quarter worth about $97,584,000. Hsbc Holdings PLC boosted its position in shares of M&T Bank by 18.9% during the 2nd quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 396,157 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $94,364,000 after acquiring an additional 62,877 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Amundi boosted its position in shares of M&T Bank by 7.7% during the 2nd quarter. Amundi now owns 388,916 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $92,566,000 after acquiring an additional 27,795 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 84.68% of the company's stock.

About M&T Bank

M&T Bank Corporation is a regional financial services company headquartered in Buffalo, New York. Founded in 1856, the company operates primarily through its M&T Bank subsidiary and serves consumers, businesses, institutions and government entities.

M&T Bank provides a range of banking products and services, including checking and savings accounts, consumer lending, residential mortgages, credit cards, commercial loans, treasury management and investment services. Through its wealth management and institutional businesses, the company also offers trust, investment management, custody and related financial services.

The bank serves customers across a footprint concentrated in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, including New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia and Washington, DC Its businesses also include Wilmington Trust, which provides wealth management, corporate and institutional trust, and related services.

John R.