On June 6, 2023, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Public School Empls Retrmt SYS stunned the financial world by announcing that it had raised its holdings in KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) by a jaw-dropping 15.6% during the fourth quarter of the previous year. The announcement came as part of its most recent 13F filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund, which managed to acquire an additional 21,285 shares during the period under review, now boasts ownership of 157,704 shares in the financial services provider’s stock. The value of those holdings is nothing short of incredible at $2,747,000.
In light of these spectacular developments, numerous brokerages have weighed in on KEY over the past few months. Odeon Capital Group’s research report on May 22 recommended that investors upgrade their ratings from “hold” to “buy,” setting a price target on the stock at $11 per share. This comment was supported by DA Davidson’s report filed on April 21 maintaining KEY’s “buy” rating despite decreasing its target price from $16 to $15 per share.
However, not all analysts agree with these assessments. JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s research report issued on April 6 lowered their price target for KEY from $16 to $12 per share, while StockNews.com began coverage of KeyCorp in their report released on May 18th with a “sell” rating for the company.
Despite these differing opinions among brokerage firms and analysts regarding possible market upsides or downsides for KEY stocks going forward, data obtained by Bloomberg reveals that KeyCorp currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target standing at $15.90 per share.
Shares of KeyCorp opened trading at an impressive figure of $10.14 per share today, showcasing renewed investor confidence following its recent climb back up from its 12-month low of $8.53 per share recorded towards the end of last year. Its current valuation now stands at an impressive $9.48 billion, with a P/E ratio towering over the industry average at 5.73 and a P/E/G ratio of 1.41 that further adds to its mystique as one of America’s premier financial providers.
Finally, KeyCorp boasts a beta coefficient of 1.25, indicating slight volatility in comparison to the benchmark S&P 500 index. Its quick and current ratios are also within industry norms at 0.86, while its debt-to-equity ratio stands at a borderline excessive reading of 1.92.
All these factors combine to make KeyCorp one company that investors need to keep an eye on if they are looking for vast potentials in profitable investment opportunities ahead. As always, caution is strongly advised when investing in stocks as market fluctuations remain a possibility even during times of prosperity as we see today with KeyCorp and its phenomenal growth in value among investor portfolios recently reported.,
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Investor Changes & Mixed Opinions: KeyCorp’s Future Outlook
KeyCorp, the financial services provider, has seen a number of large investors make strategic changes to their positions in the company. Vanguard Group Inc., one of KeyCorp’s largest investors, increased its stake in the firm by 1.2% during Q1 2023. Its holdings now total over 111 million shares, valued at approximately $2.5 billion. BlackRock Inc., State Street Corp, Boston Partners, and Royal Bank of Canada have also raised their respective positions in KeyCorp over recent months. In other news, insider Amy G. Brady sold 12,388 shares of KeyCorp stock for $125,242 on May 25th. As of June 6th this year, insiders acquired 87,700 shares worth $883,407; these insiders currently own 0.54% of the company’s stock.
Several brokerages have commented on KeyCorp recently, with mixed views on the stock’s prospects. Odeon Capital Group upgraded its rating from “hold” to “buy” with a price target of $11 per share; DA Davidson lowered its price target from $16 to $15 but maintained a “buy” rating; JPMorgan Chase & Co dropped the price target from $16 to $12 and gave no rating; StockNews.com started coverage with a “sell” rating; finally, one analyst restated an “upgrade” rating.
In Q1 2023, KeyCorp reported earnings per share (EPS) that met analysts’ predictions at $0.44 EPS and an overall net margin of 19.09%. During this period revenue was slightly below expectations at $1.71 billion compared to an estimated $1.8 billion; however it rose by 1.1% YoY.
KeyCorp announced that it will pay a quarterly dividend on Thursday June 15th to shareholders who were recorded as investors as of Tuesday May 30th. Shareholders will receive $0.205 per share, and, at current prices, this represents an 8.09% yield. The dividend payout ratio is currently 46.33%. With a range of opinions from analysts and mixed earnings expectations, it remains to be seen what investors can expect for KeyCorp in the future.