Trust Co. of Vermont Reduces Stock Position in M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB)

Trust Co. of Vermont trimmed its holdings in M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB) by 26.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 11,908 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,205 shares during the period. Trust Co. of Vermont’s holdings in M&T Bank were worth $1,632,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. GSA Capital Partners LLP purchased a new position in shares of M&T Bank in the third quarter valued at $833,000. Stevens Capital Management LP bought a new position in M&T Bank in the 4th quarter worth about $320,000. Matrix Asset Advisors Inc. NY grew its holdings in M&T Bank by 15.7% during the 4th quarter. Matrix Asset Advisors Inc. NY now owns 92,537 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $12,685,000 after buying an additional 12,590 shares in the last quarter. Smead Capital Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of M&T Bank during the fourth quarter valued at about $59,418,000. Finally, Rafferty Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of M&T Bank by 72.1% in the fourth quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC now owns 239,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $32,890,000 after buying an additional 100,526 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 84.68% of the company’s stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Doris P. Meister sold 1,638 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $138.21, for a total value of $226,387.98. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 3,362 shares in the company, valued at $464,662.02. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, Director John P. Barnes sold 43,426 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $154.50, for a total transaction of $6,709,317.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 35,480 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,481,660. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, EVP Doris P. Meister sold 1,638 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $138.21, for a total transaction of $226,387.98. Following the sale, the executive vice president now owns 3,362 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $464,662.02. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 97,553 shares of company stock valued at $14,724,147 in the last ninety days. Company insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

M&T Bank Price Performance

Shares of M&T Bank stock opened at $144.79 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $24.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.79 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a fifty day moving average of $146.58 and a 200-day moving average of $141.08. M&T Bank Co. has a 52-week low of $108.53 and a 52-week high of $156.65. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.00.

M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 15th. The financial services provider reported $3.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $3.13 by ($0.11). The business had revenue of $2.26 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.26 billion. M&T Bank had a net margin of 19.52% and a return on equity of 10.68%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $4.09 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that M&T Bank Co. will post 14.02 EPS for the current year.

M&T Bank Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Monday, June 3rd will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.73%. This is a positive change from M&T Bank’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.30. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 3rd. M&T Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on MTB shares. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of M&T Bank from $146.00 to $157.00 and gave the company an “in-line” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 28th. StockNews.com downgraded M&T Bank from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Friday, May 3rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on M&T Bank from $162.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on M&T Bank from $151.00 to $160.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 4th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $160.00 price target on shares of M&T Bank in a research report on Tuesday, April 16th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $159.79.

About M&T Bank

M&T Bank Corporation operates as a bank holding company for Manufacturers and Traders Trust Company and Wilmington Trust, National Association that engages in the provision of retail and commercial banking products and services in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Commercial Bank, Retail Bank, and Institutional Services and Wealth Management.