Ascent Group LLC Has $2.77 Million Holdings in M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB)

Ascent Group LLC lifted its stake in M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB) by 12.5% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 15,566 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,728 shares during the quarter. Ascent Group LLC’s holdings in M&T Bank were worth $2,773,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Plato Investment Management Ltd raised its holdings in shares of M&T Bank by 2,300.0% in the 3rd quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 161 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new position in shares of M&T Bank in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of M&T Bank by 54.4% in the 3rd quarter. Hexagon Capital Partners LLC now owns 193 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of M&T Bank by 329.2% in the 3rd quarter. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. now owns 206 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oakworth Capital Inc. acquired a new position in shares of M&T Bank in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $35,000. 84.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

M&T Bank Stock Down 1.3 %

NYSE MTB opened at $215.69 on Tuesday. M&T Bank Co. has a 52 week low of $128.31 and a 52 week high of $225.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $35.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.97, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.74. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $196.45 and a 200-day moving average of $172.10.

M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $3.60 by $0.48. M&T Bank had a return on equity of 9.52% and a net margin of 17.82%. The business had revenue of $2.33 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.30 billion. On average, equities research analysts forecast that M&T Bank Co. will post 14.57 EPS for the current year.

M&T Bank Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, December 2nd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.50%. M&T Bank’s dividend payout ratio is currently 39.97%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on MTB shares. Wolfe Research raised M&T Bank from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $210.00 price target for the company in a report on Friday, October 4th. Barclays raised their price target on M&T Bank from $170.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Bank of America raised their price target on M&T Bank from $188.00 to $218.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. DA Davidson raised their price target on M&T Bank from $192.00 to $207.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. Finally, StockNews.com raised M&T Bank from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eight have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $206.41.

Insider Transactions at M&T Bank

In other M&T Bank news, EVP Tracy S. Woodrow sold 2,121 shares of M&T Bank stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $220.75, for a total transaction of $468,210.75. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 5,141 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,134,875.75. The trade was a 29.21 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director John P. Barnes sold 20,000 shares of M&T Bank stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, October 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.97, for a total value of $3,879,400.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 49,960 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,690,741.20. This represents a 28.59 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 82,504 shares of company stock worth $16,673,712 in the last three months. Insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

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.