KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY) Short Interest Up 13.8% in October

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY - Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest during the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 17,580,000 shares, an increase of 13.8% from the October 15th total of 15,450,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 12,060,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 1.5 days.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on KEY shares. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on shares of KeyCorp from $18.00 to $20.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 14th. Barclays lifted their target price on KeyCorp from $16.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. DA Davidson increased their price target on KeyCorp from $19.00 to $20.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, October 21st. Royal Bank of Canada raised their price target on KeyCorp from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, October 18th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on KeyCorp from $17.00 to $18.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, October 23rd. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $18.03.

Insider Buying and Selling at KeyCorp

In related news, Director Carlton L. Highsmith sold 9,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $17.14, for a total transaction of $154,260.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 37,864 shares in the company, valued at approximately $648,988.96. The trade was a 19.20 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Angela G. Mago sold 15,011 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $19.59, for a total transaction of $294,065.49. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 234,582 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,595,461.38. This represents a 6.01 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On KeyCorp

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of KEY. Freestone Capital Holdings LLC purchased a new position in KeyCorp during the 1st quarter worth $561,000. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in KeyCorp by 87.5% in the second quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,308,797 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,598,000 after acquiring an additional 610,688 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in KeyCorp by 14.8% during the 3rd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 657,913 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $10,928,000 after acquiring an additional 85,052 shares in the last quarter. MBB Public Markets I LLC purchased a new position in KeyCorp during the 2nd quarter valued at about $981,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers raised its holdings in shares of KeyCorp by 274.4% in the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 332,140 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,251,000 after purchasing an additional 243,437 shares in the last quarter. 79.69% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

KeyCorp Trading Up 0.4 %

Shares of KEY stock traded up $0.07 on Monday, reaching $19.23. 7,319,505 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 13,905,769. The company's fifty day simple moving average is $17.23 and its 200 day simple moving average is $15.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $19.06 billion, a PE ratio of 1,922.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.05 and a beta of 1.24. The company has a current ratio of 0.88, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.09. KeyCorp has a 52 week low of $11.64 and a 52 week high of $20.00.

KeyCorp (NYSE:KEY - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $0.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.27 by $0.03. KeyCorp had a net margin of 0.76% and a return on equity of 8.24%. The firm had revenue of $1.60 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.59 billion. As a group, analysts forecast that KeyCorp will post 1.09 EPS for the current year.

About KeyCorp

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.