PJT Partners (NYSE:PJT) Stock Price Down 7.6% – Should You Sell?

PJT Partners Inc. (NYSE:PJT)’s share price dropped 7.6% during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as low as $156.41 and last traded at $155.82. 188,595 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 50% from the average session volume of 377,932 shares. The stock had previously closed at $168.56.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have commented on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of PJT Partners from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of PJT Partners from $160.00 to $162.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on shares of PJT Partners from $166.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded PJT Partners from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $170.00 target price for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 1st. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of PJT Partners in a research report on Friday, May 29th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, two have assigned a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $173.67.

PJT Partners Trading Down 7.6%

The firm has a market cap of $4.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.71 and a beta of 0.85. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $155.81 and its 200-day moving average is $157.32.

PJT Partners (NYSE:PJT) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 28th. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.51 by $0.03. PJT Partners had a net margin of 10.32% and a return on equity of 32.00%. The firm had revenue of $418.20 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $409.38 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.05 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 28.9% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that PJT Partners Inc. will post 7.5 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PJT Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, June 17th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 3rd were issued a $0.25 dividend. This represents a $1.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 0.6%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, June 3rd. PJT Partners’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.58%.

Insider Activity at PJT Partners

In other news, CFO Helen T. Meates sold 8,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $153.19, for a total value of $1,225,520.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief financial officer owned 58,466 shares in the company, valued at $8,956,406.54. This represents a 12.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, General Counsel David Adam Travin sold 3,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $152.43, for a total transaction of $457,290.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 2,052 shares in the company, valued at $312,786.36. The trade was a 59.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 10.98% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PJT Partners

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of PJT Partners by 45.7% during the 1st quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 11,471 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,581,000 after purchasing an additional 3,596 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its position in PJT Partners by 57.7% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 7,330 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,011,000 after buying an additional 2,681 shares during the period. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. increased its holdings in PJT Partners by 4.7% during the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,887 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,915,000 after buying an additional 620 shares during the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC increased its holdings in PJT Partners by 1,394.5% during the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 52,563 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,247,000 after buying an additional 49,046 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its position in PJT Partners by 5.6% in the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 370,536 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,090,000 after acquiring an additional 19,806 shares during the period. 89.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PJT Partners Company Profile

PJT Partners is a global advisory-focused investment bank that delivers strategic advisory, restructuring and special situations, and capital solutions to corporations, partnerships, and governments. The firm operates through three primary business segments: Strategic Advisory, which covers mergers and acquisitions, shareholder advisory, and capital markets advisory; Restructuring and Special Situations, which provides advice on debt and liability management, distressed mergers and acquisitions, and financial restructurings; and Park Hill, the firm’s dedicated capital-raising and secondary advisory business for private equity, real estate, hedge funds, and infrastructure.

The Strategic Advisory practice at PJT Partners assists clients with complex transactions such as cross-border mergers, spin-offs, divestitures, and takeover defenses, drawing on deep industry expertise and global reach.