AlphaQuest LLC Acquires 105,707 Shares of KeyCorp $KEY

Key Points

• AlphaQuest LLC nearly doubled its KeyCorp stake in the fourth quarter, adding 105,707 shares to reach 211,592 shares valued at about $4.37 million.
• KeyCorp reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with EPS of $0.44 versus $0.41 expected and revenue of $1.95 billion, up 10.2% year over year.
• The company also approved a $3 billion stock buyback and declared a quarterly dividend of $0.205 per share, implying a 3.8% annual yield.

AlphaQuest LLC lifted its holdings in KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY - Free Report) by 99.8% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 211,592 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 105,707 shares during the period. KeyCorp accounts for about 0.2% of AlphaQuest LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding. AlphaQuest LLC's holdings in KeyCorp were worth $4,367,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in KEY. Brighton Jones LLC bought a new position in shares of KeyCorp in the fourth quarter worth about $476,000. Woodline Partners LP boosted its stake in KeyCorp by 41.4% during the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 84,156 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,346,000 after buying an additional 24,627 shares during the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in KeyCorp by 58.0% during the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,148 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $90,000 after buying an additional 1,890 shares during the last quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in KeyCorp by 6.5% during the second quarter. Cresset Asset Management LLC now owns 15,097 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $263,000 after buying an additional 926 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Federated Hermes Inc. bought a new position in KeyCorp during the second quarter valued at approximately $186,000. Institutional investors own 79.69% of the company's stock.

KeyCorp Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of KEY stock opened at $21.59 on Tuesday. KeyCorp has a 1 year low of $15.28 and a 1 year high of $23.34. 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 stock's 50 day simple moving average is $20.93 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $20.58. The company has a market cap of $23.40 billion, a PE ratio of 13.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.06.

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The financial services provider reported $0.44 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates 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 prior year, the business posted $0.38 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 10.2% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts predict that KeyCorp will post 1.82 earnings per share for the current year.

KeyCorp announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, May 13th that allows the company to repurchase $3.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization allows the financial services provider to repurchase up to 13% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

KeyCorp Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, June 2nd will be issued a $0.205 dividend. This represents a $0.82 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, June 2nd. KeyCorp's dividend payout ratio is presently 50.31%.

Insider Buying and Selling at KeyCorp

In other news, insider Angela G. Mago sold 22,826 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $21.66, for a total value of $494,411.16. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 281,564 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,098,676.24. This represents a 7.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.56% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently commented on KEY shares. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on KeyCorp from $22.00 to $24.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Susquehanna increased their price target on KeyCorp from $300.00 to $415.00 and gave the company a "positive" rating in a research note on Monday, May 18th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on KeyCorp from $21.00 to $23.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Wall Street Zen lowered KeyCorp from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Saturday, May 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on KeyCorp from $25.00 to $26.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Thirteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $42.78.

KeyCorp Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.