Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Purchases 29,883 Shares of State Street Corporation (NYSE:STT)

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has increased its stake in State Street Corporation by 198.3%, acquiring an additional 29,883 shares, bringing its total holdings to 44,950 shares valued at approximately $4,024,000.
• State Street Corporation reported earnings of $2.53 per share, exceeding analysts' expectations and showing a 2.9% increase in revenue compared to the previous year.
• The company has announced a quarterly dividend of $0.84 per share, up from the previous $0.76, representing an annualized yield of 3.1%.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. boosted its stake in State Street Corporation (NYSE:STT - Free Report) by 198.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 44,950 shares of the asset manager's stock after purchasing an additional 29,883 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in State Street were worth $4,024,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. First Pacific Financial purchased a new position in State Street during the first quarter worth about $25,000. Larson Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in State Street by 40.8% during the first quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 407 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 118 shares during the last quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC boosted its holdings in State Street by 2,942.9% during the fourth quarter. Coppell Advisory Solutions LLC now owns 426 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 412 shares during the last quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in State Street by 186.7% during the first quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 476 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $43,000 after purchasing an additional 310 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MV Capital Management Inc. boosted its holdings in State Street by 98.4% during the first quarter. MV Capital Management Inc. now owns 506 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 251 shares during the last quarter. 87.44% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

State Street Price Performance

NYSE STT traded up $0.01 on Tuesday, hitting $109.79. The stock had a trading volume of 85,474 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,111,637. State Street Corporation has a 52-week low of $72.81 and a 52-week high of $114.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a current ratio of 0.57. The company has a market capitalization of $31.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.21 and a beta of 1.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $104.38 and a 200-day moving average of $96.26.

State Street (NYSE:STT - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 15th. The asset manager reported $2.53 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.36 by $0.17. The firm had revenue of $3.47 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.33 billion. State Street had a net margin of 12.59% and a return on equity of 12.96%. The business's quarterly revenue was up 2.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.15 EPS. Equities analysts expect that State Street Corporation will post 9.68 EPS for the current year.

State Street Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 14th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.84 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 1st. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. This is an increase from State Street's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. State Street's payout ratio is 34.04%.

Insider Activity at State Street

In related news, EVP Michael L. Richards sold 990 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.29, for a total transaction of $108,197.10. Following the transaction, the executive vice president owned 41,332 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $4,517,174.28. This trade represents a 2.34% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on STT. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of State Street from $102.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of State Street from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Bank of America boosted their price target on shares of State Street from $106.00 to $109.00 and gave the stock an "underperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price target on shares of State Street from $118.00 to $113.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of State Street from $127.00 to $120.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have given a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $112.00.

About State Street

State Street Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides a range of financial products and services to institutional investors worldwide. The company offers investment servicing products and services, including custody, accounting, regulatory reporting, investor, and performance and analytics; middle office products, such as IBOR, transaction management, loans, cash, derivatives and collateral, record keeping, and client reporting and investment analytics; finance leasing; foreign exchange, and brokerage and other trading services; securities finance and enhanced custody products; deposit and short-term investment facilities; investment manager and alternative investment manager operations outsourcing; performance, risk, and compliance analytics; and financial data management to support institutional investors.