Short Interest in M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB) Declines By 17.5%

M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB) was the target of a significant drop in short interest during the month of December. As of December 15th, there was short interest totalling 3,580,000 shares, a drop of 17.5% from the November 30th total of 4,340,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,150,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 3.1 days.

M&T Bank Price Performance

Shares of M&T Bank stock traded down $0.67 on Monday, hitting $188.56. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 553,413 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,050,942. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $204.09 and a 200-day moving average price of $179.25. M&T Bank has a 52-week low of $128.31 and a 52-week high of $225.70. The company has a market capitalization of $31.29 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.96, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.83 and a beta of 0.76.

M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 17th. The financial services provider reported $4.08 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $3.60 by $0.48. M&T Bank had a net margin of 17.82% and a return on equity of 9.52%. The company had revenue of $2.33 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.30 billion. On average, equities research analysts expect that M&T Bank will post 14.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

M&T Bank Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 31st. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 2nd will be given a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.86%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, December 2nd. M&T Bank’s payout ratio is 39.97%.

Insider Transactions at M&T Bank

In related news, CEO Rene F. Jones sold 23,071 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, October 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $193.88, for a total transaction of $4,473,005.48. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 77,226 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $14,972,576.88. This trade represents a 23.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, EVP Tracy S. Woodrow sold 2,121 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, November 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $220.75, for a total value of $468,210.75. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 5,141 shares in the company, valued at $1,134,875.75. This trade represents a 29.21 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last ninety days, insiders have sold 84,994 shares of company stock worth $17,211,278. Insiders own 0.82% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On M&T Bank

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. FMR LLC increased its position in M&T Bank by 13.9% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 12,349,398 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,199,675,000 after purchasing an additional 1,508,846 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its position in shares of M&T Bank by 6.4% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 8,773,439 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,562,725,000 after purchasing an additional 527,854 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in M&T Bank by 3.9% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,037,144 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $897,216,000 after purchasing an additional 190,837 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in M&T Bank by 1.6% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,329,814 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $768,824,000 after buying an additional 66,337 shares during the period. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in M&T Bank by 4.8% in the 2nd quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 1,781,816 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $269,696,000 after buying an additional 81,004 shares during the last quarter. 84.68% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have commented on MTB shares. StockNews.com upgraded shares of M&T Bank from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 18th. Wolfe Research raised shares of 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 lifted their price objective 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. Wedbush increased their target price on M&T Bank from $208.00 to $210.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on M&T Bank from $190.00 to $205.00 and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research note on Friday, November 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, M&T Bank presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $215.50.

M&T Bank Company Profile

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.