M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB) Position Lessened by DnB Asset Management AS

DnB Asset Management AS reduced its stake in shares of M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB - Free Report) by 6.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 355,523 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 25,019 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS owned 0.21% of M&T Bank worth $66,842,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its position in shares of M&T Bank by 122.6% in the 4th quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 207 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Human Investing LLC purchased a new stake in shares of M&T Bank in the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new stake in shares of M&T Bank in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $44,000. Loomis Sayles & Co. L P purchased a new position in shares of M&T Bank during the 4th quarter worth approximately $52,000. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. raised its position in shares of M&T Bank by 47.5% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 410 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $77,000 after purchasing an additional 132 shares during the last quarter. 84.68% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the company. Compass Point raised their price target on M&T Bank from $220.00 to $250.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. restated a "neutral" rating and set a $223.50 target price (up previously from $215.00) on shares of M&T Bank in a research report on Wednesday, December 4th. DA Davidson increased their price target on M&T Bank from $222.00 to $223.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, January 17th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on M&T Bank from $269.00 to $253.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Barclays boosted their target price on shares of M&T Bank from $228.00 to $235.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $218.79.

Insider Activity

In other M&T Bank news, EVP Christopher E. Kay sold 1,738 shares of M&T Bank stock in a transaction 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 completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 10,751 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,852,827.34. The trade was a 13.92 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. Company insiders own 0.53% of the company's stock.

M&T Bank Stock Down 1.2 %

Shares of NYSE:MTB traded down $2.15 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $176.60. The company had a trading volume of 353,360 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,087,342. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.01 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.08, a PEG ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.74. The stock's fifty day moving average price is $189.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $192.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.99. M&T Bank Co. has a one year low of $133.03 and a one year high of $225.70.

M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.22. M&T Bank had a net margin of 19.24% and a return on equity of 10.12%. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.74 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that M&T Bank Co. will post 16.57 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

M&T Bank Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were given a $1.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.06%. M&T Bank's payout ratio is 36.91%.

M&T Bank announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 22nd that allows the company to buyback $4.00 billion in 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 often an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

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.