State Street (NYSE:STT) Sets New 12-Month High - Time to Buy?

Key Points

• State Street hit a new 52-week high of $164.05, reflecting strong recent momentum even as the stock finished slightly below that level intraday.
• Recent analyst sentiment has been broadly positive, with several firms raising price targets and the consensus rating sitting at Moderate Buy with an average target of $158.57.
• The company beat earnings expectations in its latest quarter, reporting $2.84 EPS versus $2.64 expected and revenue of $3.80 billion, while also announcing a quarterly dividend of $0.84 per share.

State Street Corporation (NYSE:STT - Get Free Report)'s share price hit a new 52-week high during trading on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $164.05 and last traded at $163.17, with a volume of 141624 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $161.81.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have commented on STT shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price objective on State Street from $157.00 to $175.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Barclays set a $165.00 price target on State Street in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Seaport Research Partners reissued a "buy" rating and set a $170.00 price objective on shares of State Street in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of State Street from $150.00 to $172.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Bank of America raised shares of State Street from an "underperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $143.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eight have given a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, State Street presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $158.57.

State Street Trading Down 0.9%

The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $147.70 and a 200 day simple moving average of $134.16. The company has a current ratio of 0.57, a quick ratio of 0.57 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.04. The firm has a market capitalization of $44.39 billion, a PE ratio of 16.26, a P/E/G ratio of 0.88 and a beta of 1.43.

State Street (NYSE:STT - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Friday, April 17th. The asset manager reported $2.84 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.64 by $0.20. State Street had a return on equity of 14.22% and a net margin of 13.47%.The business had revenue of $3.80 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.59 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $2.04 EPS. The company's revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that State Street Corporation will post 12.35 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

State Street Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, July 13th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be given a $0.84 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 1st. This represents a $3.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.1%. State Street's payout ratio is 34.08%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other State Street news, EVP W. Bradford Hu sold 9,212 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $155.35, for a total value of $1,431,084.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president owned 59,552 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,251,403.20. The trade was a 13.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. The transaction was executed under a pre-arranged Rule 10b5-1 trading plan. Also, EVP Michael L. Richards sold 3,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 22nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.89, for a total value of $461,670.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 43,522 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $6,697,600.58. This represents a 6.45% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold 52,476 shares of company stock worth $7,624,925 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.27% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On State Street

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC raised its holdings in State Street by 18.1% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 4,602 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $583,000 after purchasing an additional 705 shares during the period. Regents of The University of California grew its stake in shares of State Street by 15.6% during the 1st quarter. Regents of The University of California now owns 10,065,118 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,273,841,000 after acquiring an additional 1,358,923 shares during the period. Carlson Capital L.P. grew its stake in shares of State Street by 156.9% during the 1st quarter. Carlson Capital L.P. now owns 15,413 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $1,951,000 after acquiring an additional 9,413 shares during the period. Axiom Investment Management LLC bought a new position in shares of State Street during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $89,000. Finally, CCM Investment Advisers LLC grew its stake in shares of State Street by 8.8% during the 1st quarter. CCM Investment Advisers LLC now owns 83,669 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $10,589,000 after acquiring an additional 6,790 shares during the period. 87.44% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

State Street Company Profile

State Street Corporation is a global financial services company that provides a range of investment servicing, investment management and investment research and trading services to institutional investors. Its principal activities include custody and fund administration, securities lending, performance and risk analytics, trading and execution services, and foreign exchange. The company also offers investment management through State Street Global Advisors, a major provider of exchange-traded funds and institutional investment strategies.

State Street serves a broad client base of asset managers, insurance companies, pension funds, endowments, and other institutions across North America, Europe, Asia and other global markets.

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