Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. Reduces Position in M&T Bank Corporation $MTB

Key Points

• Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. reduced its stake in M&T Bank Corporation by 5.5%, now holding 55,774 shares valued at approximately $9.97 million.
• Several hedge funds have altered their positions in M&T Bank, with Investors Research Corp increasing its stake by 31.1% in the first quarter.
• M&T Bank has recently received upgraded ratings from multiple brokerages, with price targets ranging from $185.00 to $215.00, indicating renewed investor interest.

Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P. cut its holdings in shares of M&T Bank Corporation (NYSE:MTB - Free Report) by 5.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 55,774 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 3,232 shares during the quarter. Northwest & Ethical Investments L.P.'s holdings in M&T Bank were worth $9,968,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of MTB. Nuveen LLC acquired a new position in M&T Bank during the first quarter worth about $243,451,000. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its holdings in M&T Bank by 18,471.2% in the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 705,705 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $126,145,000 after purchasing an additional 701,905 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. boosted its holdings in M&T Bank by 15.2% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 3,552,666 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $635,039,000 after purchasing an additional 468,758 shares during the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in M&T Bank by 22.3% in the 4th quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC now owns 1,567,270 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $294,662,000 after purchasing an additional 286,049 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC boosted its holdings in M&T Bank by 390.5% in the 1st quarter. Brandywine Global Investment Management LLC now owns 349,506 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $62,474,000 after purchasing an additional 278,246 shares during the last quarter. 84.68% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Peter D'arcy sold 2,461 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, July 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $197.31, for a total transaction of $485,579.91. Following the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 9,319 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,838,731.89. This represents a 20.89% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert E. Sadler, Jr. sold 6,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $183.52, for a total transaction of $1,229,584.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 23,070 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,233,806.40. The trade was a 22.51% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 10,438 shares of company stock valued at $1,967,346 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

M&T Bank Stock Up 3.7%

MTB traded up $7.1850 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $199.6150. 1,110,391 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,251,532. M&T Bank Corporation has a 12-month low of $150.75 and a 12-month high of $225.70. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $192.29 and a 200 day moving average of $183.63. The firm has a market cap of $31.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.95 and a beta of 0.63. The company has a current ratio of 0.97, a quick ratio of 0.97 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 16th. The financial services provider reported $4.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $4.04 by $0.24. M&T Bank had a net margin of 20.44% and a return on equity of 10.35%. The firm had revenue of $2.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.39 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.73 EPS. Analysts predict that M&T Bank Corporation will post 16.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

M&T Bank Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be paid a dividend of $1.50 per share. This represents a $6.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, September 2nd. This is an increase from M&T Bank's previous quarterly dividend of $1.35. M&T Bank's payout ratio is currently 38.86%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group set a $225.00 target price on shares of M&T Bank and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on shares of M&T Bank from $175.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and issued a $200.00 target price on shares of M&T Bank in a report on Monday, May 19th. DA Davidson boosted their target price on shares of M&T Bank from $189.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of M&T Bank from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating and set a $210.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Thirteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, seven have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, M&T Bank presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $212.88.

About M&T Bank

M&T Bank Corp. operates as a bank holding company, which engages in the provision of retail and commercial banking, trust, wealth management, and investment services. It operates through the following segments: Commercial Bank, Retail Bank, Institutional Services and Wealth Management, and All Other.