Ruffer LLP Reduces Stock Holdings in M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB)

Ruffer LLP lowered its stake in shares of M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB) by 47.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 72,992 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 66,263 shares during the period. Ruffer LLP’s holdings in M&T Bank were worth $13,723,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of M&T Bank by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 15,819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,195,000 after purchasing an additional 52 shares during the period. Catalina Capital Group LLC lifted its holdings in M&T Bank by 2.0% in the fourth quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 2,824 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $531,000 after buying an additional 56 shares during the period. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in M&T Bank by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $975,000 after buying an additional 63 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Management LLC lifted its holdings in M&T Bank by 3.8% in the fourth quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,786 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $336,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, Pitcairn Co. increased its stake in shares of M&T Bank by 0.8% during the third quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 9,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,668,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 84.68% of the company’s stock.

M&T Bank Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of M&T Bank stock opened at $178.62 on Friday. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $194.07 and its 200-day simple moving average is $191.77. The stock has a market capitalization of $29.34 billion, a PE ratio of 12.21, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.74. M&T Bank Co. has a 1-year low of $133.03 and a 1-year high of $225.70. 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 (NYSE:MTB) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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 quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $2.74 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that M&T Bank Co. will post 16.57 earnings per share for the current year.

M&T Bank declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, January 22nd that permits the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to buy up to 12.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

M&T Bank Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be paid a dividend of $1.35 per share. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.02%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. M&T Bank’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 36.91%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on MTB shares. Barclays raised 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 research note on Monday, January 6th. Citigroup downgraded shares of M&T Bank from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and raised their price target for the company from $220.00 to $230.00 in a research report on Monday, November 25th. Truist Financial reissued a “buy” rating and set a $236.00 price target (up previously from $233.00) on shares of M&T Bank in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of M&T Bank from $205.00 to $243.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, November 27th. Finally, StockNews.com raised shares of M&T Bank from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $221.68.

M&T Bank Company 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: Business Banking, Commercial Banking, Commercial Real Estate, Discretionary Portfolio, Residential Mortgage Banking, and Retail Banking.