D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. Invests $48.94 Million in M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB)

D. E. Shaw & Co. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB) during the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm bought 260,302 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $48,939,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Banque Transatlantique SA acquired a new position in shares of M&T Bank during the fourth quarter worth about $38,000. Y.D. More Investments Ltd raised its holdings in shares of M&T Bank by 122.6% during the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 207 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 114 shares during the period. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of M&T Bank during the 4th quarter valued at about $44,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in M&T Bank during the 4th quarter worth approximately $44,000. Finally, Loomis Sayles & Co. L P acquired a new stake in M&T Bank in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $52,000. 84.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

M&T Bank Stock Performance

Shares of MTB stock opened at $177.11 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $29.10 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.11, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.58. The business has a 50 day moving average of $170.16 and a two-hundred day moving average of $189.62. M&T Bank Co. has a 52 week low of $139.78 and a 52 week high of $225.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47.

M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB) last released its quarterly earnings data on Monday, April 14th. The financial services provider reported $3.38 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.41 by ($0.03). M&T Bank had a net margin of 19.24% and a return on equity of 10.12%. The company had revenue of $2.31 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.35 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $3.09 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that M&T Bank Co. will post 16.57 EPS for the current year.

M&T Bank announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 22nd that allows the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the financial services provider to buy up to 12.3% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

M&T Bank Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.05%. M&T Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 36.17%.

Insider Activity at M&T Bank

In other M&T Bank news, EVP Christopher E. Kay sold 1,738 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred 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 sale, the executive vice president now owns 10,751 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,852,827.34. This trade represents a 13.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently commented on MTB shares. StockNews.com cut shares of M&T Bank from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of M&T Bank from $269.00 to $253.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 13th. Barclays dropped their target price on M&T Bank from $235.00 to $220.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 15th. Citigroup reduced their price target on M&T Bank from $230.00 to $195.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Monday, March 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on M&T Bank from $212.50 to $186.50 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have given a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, M&T Bank presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $208.24.

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.