Zacks Research Downgrades Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) to Strong Sell

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) was downgraded by Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday,Zacks.com reports.

Several other research analysts have also recently commented on SF. TD Cowen lowered their target price on shares of Stifel Financial from $136.00 to $92.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Stifel Financial from $88.67 to $90.67 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 8th. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $99.33 price objective on shares of Stifel Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on Stifel Financial from $100.00 to $89.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Stifel Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Monday, March 2nd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $91.15.

Stifel Financial Trading Down 5.9%

SF stock opened at $77.39 on Tuesday. Stifel Financial has a 52 week low of $54.49 and a 52 week high of $89.83. The company has a market capitalization of $11.98 billion, a PE ratio of 19.74 and a beta of 1.10. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $75.44 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.25, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.84.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $1.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.51 billion. Stifel Financial had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 15.53%. The business’s revenue was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.49 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Stifel Financial will post 6.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Stifel Financial news, insider David Rubulotta sold 600 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $82.87, for a total transaction of $49,724.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 1,488 shares in the company, valued at $123,315.52. The trade was a 28.74% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 3.28% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stifel Financial

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc raised its stake in Stifel Financial by 32.2% during the third quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 184,047 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $20,876,000 after acquiring an additional 44,844 shares in the last quarter. CWM LLC boosted its stake in shares of Stifel Financial by 127.4% in the 3rd quarter. CWM LLC now owns 29,654 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,365,000 after purchasing an additional 16,616 shares in the last quarter. Inspire Investing LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Stifel Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,047,000. Algebris UK Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Stifel Financial by 136.8% during the 3rd quarter. Algebris UK Ltd. now owns 246,198 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,915,000 after purchasing an additional 142,223 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Verdence Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Stifel Financial during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $4,019,000. Institutional investors own 82.01% of the company’s stock.

Key Headlines Impacting Stifel Financial

Here are the key news stories impacting Stifel Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 EPS and net income beat consensus and company reported record net revenues and strong net income, showing meaningful year-over-year improvement — a fundamental positive for earnings power. Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Investment banking led results (M&A and capital markets strength) helped drive the revenue beat and is highlighted as the growth engine in analyst write-ups. IB Analysis
• Positive Sentiment: Mgmt outlined a Q2 net interest income range ($280M–$290M) and reiterated up to $4B full‑year bank asset growth — supportive for recurring NII if rates and asset mix hold. NII Guidance
• Neutral Sentiment: Full earnings call transcript and slide deck are available for deeper read — useful for active investors but neutral until new guidance or detail changes expectations. Call Transcript Slide Deck
• Negative Sentiment: Zacks downgraded SF from “hold” to “strong sell,” which can pressure short‑term sentiment and trigger selling from investors following Zacks’ signals. Zacks TickerReport
• Negative Sentiment: Management and post‑earnings coverage flagged macro and dealmaking risks; revenue missed some street estimates despite the EPS beat, which likely fueled the selloff. TipRanks Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: Third‑party comparisons and industry pieces (e.g., Bank of America vs. Stifel) provide context on relative valuation and scale but are not direct catalysts. Comparison

Stifel Financial Company Profile

Stifel Financial Corp. is a diversified financial services holding company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1890, the firm has grown into a full‐service brokerage and investment banking organization serving individual investors, corporations and institutions. Through its principal subsidiary, Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, the company delivers a broad array of financial products and services backed by research‐driven insights.

The firm’s main business activities are organized into two core segments: Private Client Group and Institutional Group.