KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of March. As of March 31st, there was short interest totalling 28,000,000 shares, an increase of 5.3% from the March 15th total of 26,590,000 shares. Approximately 3.0% of the shares of the company are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 16,170,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.7 days.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on KEY. Barclays lowered their price target on KeyCorp from $17.00 to $16.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price target on KeyCorp from $13.50 to $15.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, December 18th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price target on KeyCorp from $13.00 to $15.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, January 19th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on KeyCorp from $16.00 to $17.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, January 26th. Finally, Raymond James began coverage on KeyCorp in a research report on Monday, January 8th. They set a “market perform” rating on the stock. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, six have assigned a hold rating and twelve have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, KeyCorp presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $15.53.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other KeyCorp news, insider Angela G. Mago sold 3,405 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.24, for a total value of $48,487.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 214,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,056,331.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other KeyCorp news, insider Angela G. Mago sold 3,405 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $14.24, for a total value of $48,487.20. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 214,630 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,056,331.20. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Kenneth C. Gavrity sold 2,376 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $14.03, for a total value of $33,335.28. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 98,120 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,376,623.60. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 21,442 shares of company stock valued at $303,914 over the last three months. 0.67% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KeyCorp

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of KeyCorp by 8.5% in the 4th quarter. Nisa Investment Advisors LLC now owns 273,010 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,931,000 after purchasing an additional 21,395 shares during the period. Miller Howard Investments Inc. NY acquired a new stake in KeyCorp during the 4th quarter worth about $7,200,000. Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its position in KeyCorp by 1.0% during the 4th quarter. Fifth Third Bancorp now owns 237,934 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,426,000 after acquiring an additional 2,344 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its position in KeyCorp by 16.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 23,126,760 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $248,844,000 after acquiring an additional 3,216,584 shares during the period. Finally, Raymond James & Associates boosted its position in KeyCorp by 44.1% during the 4th quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,610,148 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $23,186,000 after acquiring an additional 492,584 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 79.69% of the company’s stock.

KeyCorp Stock Performance

Shares of KEY traded down $0.21 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $14.22. 13,132,821 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 16,039,447. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.18 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.98 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. KeyCorp has a twelve month low of $8.53 and a twelve month high of $15.86. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $14.65 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $13.31.

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, January 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.25 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.23 by $0.02. KeyCorp had a return on equity of 10.63% and a net margin of 8.61%. The business had revenue of $1.53 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.53 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.38 earnings per share. Analysts predict that KeyCorp will post 1.17 earnings per share for the current year.

KeyCorp Company Profile

KeyCorp operates as the holding company for KeyBank National Association that provides various retail and commercial banking products and services in the United States. It operates in two segments, Consumer Bank and Commercial Bank. The company offers various deposits, investment products and services; commercial leasing, investment management, consumer finance; and personal finance and financial wellness, student loan refinancing, mortgage and home equity, lending, credit card, treasury, business advisory, wealth management, asset management, cash management, portfolio management, and trust and related services to individuals and small and medium-sized businesses.