Independent Advisor Alliance Purchases 478 Shares of M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB)

Independent Advisor Alliance lifted its position in shares of M&T Bank Co. (NYSE:MTB) by 29.9% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 2,077 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 478 shares during the quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in M&T Bank were worth $391,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Sanctuary Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of M&T Bank by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 15,819 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,195,000 after acquiring an additional 52 shares during the period. Catalina Capital Group LLC grew its stake in shares of M&T Bank by 2.0% during the 4th quarter. Catalina Capital Group LLC now owns 2,824 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $531,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the period. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of M&T Bank by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Sheaff Brock Investment Advisors LLC now owns 5,188 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $975,000 after acquiring an additional 63 shares during the period. Meridian Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of M&T Bank by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Meridian Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,786 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $336,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares during the period. Finally, Pitcairn Co. boosted its stake in M&T Bank by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. Pitcairn Co. now owns 9,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,668,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 84.68% of the company’s stock.

M&T Bank Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE MTB opened at $175.61 on Tuesday. The stock has a market cap of $28.85 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.00, a P/E/G ratio of 1.38 and a beta of 0.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.98, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47. M&T Bank Co. has a 1-year low of $133.03 and a 1-year high of $225.70. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $192.09 and its 200 day moving average is $192.19.

M&T Bank (NYSE:MTB) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, January 16th. The financial services provider reported $3.92 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.70 by $0.22. M&T Bank had a return on equity of 10.12% and a net margin of 19.24%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $2.74 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that M&T Bank Co. will post 16.57 EPS for the current fiscal year.

M&T Bank declared that its board has initiated a stock repurchase program on Wednesday, January 22nd that authorizes the company to buyback $4.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 12.3% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

M&T Bank Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $1.35 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $5.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.07%. M&T Bank’s dividend payout ratio is 36.91%.

Insider Activity at M&T Bank

In related news, EVP Christopher E. Kay sold 1,738 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.34, for a total transaction of $299,526.92. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 10,751 shares in the company, valued at $1,852,827.34. This trade represents a 13.92 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.53% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the company. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on M&T Bank from $269.00 to $253.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on M&T Bank from $216.00 to $243.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 26th. Barclays raised their target price on M&T Bank from $228.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Evercore ISI cut their target price on M&T Bank from $234.00 to $205.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, StockNews.com upgraded M&T Bank from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, M&T Bank presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $222.03.

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: Business Banking, Commercial Banking, Commercial Real Estate, Discretionary Portfolio, Residential Mortgage Banking, and Retail Banking.