Rafferty Asset Management LLC Raises Stake in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF)

Rafferty Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) by 2.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 64,557 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,717 shares during the quarter. Rafferty Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Raymond James were worth $10,028,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in RJF. Norges Bank purchased a new position in Raymond James during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $294,647,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in Raymond James during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $105,701,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 12.0% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,544,610 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $556,533,000 after buying an additional 488,245 shares in the last quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 433.4% in the fourth quarter. PNC Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 567,460 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $88,144,000 after buying an additional 461,069 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Northern Trust Corp lifted its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 18.4% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 2,107,218 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $327,314,000 after buying an additional 327,739 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Raymond James from $149.00 to $161.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. JMP Securities reissued a “market outperform” rating and issued a $175.00 target price on shares of Raymond James in a report on Thursday, April 24th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Raymond James from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of Raymond James from $176.00 to $143.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Raymond James from $198.00 to $173.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Raymond James currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $153.82.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider James E. Bunn sold 3,650 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.49, for a total value of $498,188.50. Following the sale, the insider now owns 78,227 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $10,677,203.23. This represents a 4.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Raymond James Price Performance

Raymond James stock opened at $153.93 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $31.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.02, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.02. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $139.29 and its 200 day moving average is $152.45. The company has a quick ratio of 1.01, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35. Raymond James has a 52-week low of $104.24 and a 52-week high of $174.32.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.02). Raymond James had a net margin of 14.06% and a return on equity of 19.71%. The firm had revenue of $3.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.46 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.31 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 9.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts forecast that Raymond James will post 11.17 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Raymond James Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were paid a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.30%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. Raymond James’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.25%.

Raymond James Company Profile

Raymond James Financial, Inc, a financial holding company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the underwriting, distribution, trading, and brokerage of equity and debt securities, and the sale of mutual funds and other investment products in the United States, Canada, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Private Client Group, Capital Markets, Asset Management, RJ Bank, and Other segments.