Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. Grows Stock Position in NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTES)

Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in NetEase, Inc. (NASDAQ:NTES) by 8.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,348 shares of the technology company’s stock after buying an additional 188 shares during the period. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc.’s holdings in NetEase were worth $219,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Headlands Technologies LLC purchased a new stake in shares of NetEase in the 3rd quarter worth about $56,000. Huntington National Bank lifted its holdings in NetEase by 31.4% in the 3rd quarter. Huntington National Bank now owns 678 shares of the technology company’s stock valued at $68,000 after purchasing an additional 162 shares in the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new position in NetEase in the 4th quarter valued at about $65,000. C M Bidwell & Associates Ltd. purchased a new position in NetEase in the 3rd quarter valued at about $99,000. Finally, Liontrust Investment Partners LLP purchased a new position in NetEase in the 3rd quarter valued at about $170,000. 11.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

NetEase Stock Performance

NTES opened at $94.02 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $102.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $103.09. The company has a market cap of $60.62 billion, a PE ratio of 14.85, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 0.58. NetEase, Inc. has a 1 year low of $80.79 and a 1 year high of $118.89.

NetEase (NASDAQ:NTES) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 29th. The technology company reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.62 by ($0.20). NetEase had a return on equity of 24.36% and a net margin of 28.39%. The business had revenue of $3.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.96 billion. On average, sell-side analysts predict that NetEase, Inc. will post 7.04 earnings per share for the current year.

NetEase Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 14th were given a $1.08 dividend. This is an increase from NetEase’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.50. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 13th. This represents a $4.32 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.59%. NetEase’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 68.09%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have issued reports on NTES. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of NetEase from $135.00 to $120.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 12th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of NetEase from a “buy” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 26th. Finally, HSBC cut their price objective on shares of NetEase from $130.00 to $126.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $126.00.

NetEase Company Profile

NetEase, Inc engages in online games, music streaming, online intelligent learning services, and internet content services businesses in China and internationally . The company operates through Games and Related Value-Added Services, Youdao, Cloud Music, and Innovative Businesses and Others segments.