Westpac Banking Corp Sells 6,998 Shares of State Street Corporation (NYSE:STT)

Key Points

• Westpac Banking Corp reduced its stake in State Street Corporation by 12.9%, ending the first quarter with 47,175 shares valued at approximately $4.22 million.
• Multiple hedge funds adjusted their holdings in State Street, with Callan Family Office LLC increasing its position by 144.0% during the same period.
• State Street announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.84 per share, reflecting a 3.1% dividend yield, payable on October 14th.

Westpac Banking Corp decreased its holdings in shares of State Street Corporation (NYSE:STT - Free Report) by 12.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 47,175 shares of the asset manager's stock after selling 6,998 shares during the period. Westpac Banking Corp's holdings in State Street were worth $4,224,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Callan Family Office LLC raised its position in shares of State Street by 144.0% during the 1st quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 27,406 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,454,000 after purchasing an additional 16,172 shares during the period. Public Sector Pension Investment Board lifted its stake in shares of State Street by 1.4% during the 1st quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 77,146 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $6,907,000 after buying an additional 1,072 shares in the last quarter. AIA Group Ltd lifted its stake in shares of State Street by 13.1% during the 1st quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 22,558 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $2,020,000 after buying an additional 2,610 shares in the last quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC boosted its stake in shares of State Street by 31.0% in the first quarter. Longfellow Investment Management Co. LLC now owns 12,452 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $1,115,000 after acquiring an additional 2,944 shares during the period. Finally, Nuveen LLC purchased a new stake in shares of State Street during the first quarter worth about $93,016,000. Institutional investors own 87.44% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on STT. Citigroup upped their price target on State Street from $100.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of State Street from $127.00 to $120.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on shares of State Street from $113.00 to $121.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 8th. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of State Street from $106.00 to $109.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reduced their target price on State Street from $118.00 to $113.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, State Street currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $112.82.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Michael L. Richards sold 990 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated 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 directly owned 41,332 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,517,174.28. This represents a 2.34% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.29% of the company's stock.

State Street Price Performance

Shares of State Street stock traded up $2.07 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $113.57. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,429,951 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,094,757. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $106.34 and a 200-day moving average price of $96.89. State Street Corporation has a one year low of $72.81 and a one year high of $114.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09, a current ratio of 0.57 and a quick ratio of 0.57. The stock has a market cap of $32.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.23 and a beta of 1.48.

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

State Street Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared 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. This represents a $3.36 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, October 1st. This is a positive change from State Street's previous quarterly dividend of $0.76. State Street's payout ratio is currently 34.04%.

State Street Profile

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.