Beacon Financial Group Trims Holdings in M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB)

Beacon Financial Group cut its stake in M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB) by 21.2% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,240 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 334 shares during the quarter. Beacon Financial Group’s holdings in M&T Bank were worth $222,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in MTB. FMR LLC grew its position in shares of M&T Bank by 14.3% in the fourth quarter. FMR LLC now owns 14,110,412 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,652,899,000 after purchasing an additional 1,761,014 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of M&T Bank in the fourth quarter valued at $317,690,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of M&T Bank by 18,471.2% in the first 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 in the last quarter. Nuveen Asset Management LLC grew its position in shares of M&T Bank by 22.3% in the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Finally, D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. purchased a new position in M&T Bank during the fourth quarter worth about $48,939,000. 84.68% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

M&T Bank Trading Up 2.4%

MTB stock opened at $184.21 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $29.57 billion, a PE ratio of 12.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.58. M&T Bank Co. has a one year low of $139.78 and a one year high of $225.70. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $172.67 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $186.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.98.

M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $3.38 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.41 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $2.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.35 billion. M&T Bank had a return on equity of 10.12% and a net margin of 19.24%. During the same period last year, the business posted $3.09 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that M&T Bank Co. will post 16.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

M&T Bank Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Monday, June 2nd will be paid a $1.35 dividend. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.93%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 2nd. M&T Bank’s payout ratio is 36.17%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, EVP Christopher E. Kay sold 1,738 shares of M&T Bank stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $172.34, for a total value of $299,526.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,751 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,852,827.34. The trade was a 13.92% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.53% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have weighed in on MTB. TD Cowen started coverage on M&T Bank in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $230.00 price target on the stock. Wall Street Zen raised shares of M&T Bank from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upgraded shares of M&T Bank from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $210.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Robert W. Baird dropped their target price on shares of M&T Bank from $220.00 to $200.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group set a $225.00 target price on shares of M&T Bank and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have issued a hold rating and thirteen have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $212.53.

M&T Bank Profile

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.