Sentry Investment Management LLC Trims Position in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF)

Sentry Investment Management LLC trimmed its position in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) by 9.7% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 985 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 106 shares during the period. Sentry Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Raymond James were worth $110,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Private Advisor Group LLC purchased a new stake in Raymond James during the first quarter valued at approximately $364,000. Yousif Capital Management LLC lifted its position in Raymond James by 1.0% during the first quarter. Yousif Capital Management LLC now owns 28,663 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,150,000 after purchasing an additional 275 shares in the last quarter. Cibc World Market Inc. bought a new position in shares of Raymond James during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $4,195,000. Prudential PLC purchased a new stake in Raymond James in the 1st quarter worth approximately $540,000. Finally, Cetera Investment Advisers raised its position in shares of Raymond James by 52.9% during the 1st quarter. Cetera Investment Advisers now owns 4,636 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $510,000 after purchasing an additional 1,604 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.83% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Citigroup upped their price objective on Raymond James from $112.00 to $132.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 11th. TD Cowen upped their price target on Raymond James from $116.50 to $131.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research note on Friday, March 22nd. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Raymond James from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of Raymond James from $116.00 to $115.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 25th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Raymond James in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $123.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Jonathan N. Santelli sold 1,891 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, January 29th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.91, for a total value of $211,621.81. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 21,491 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,405,057.81. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. In other news, EVP Jonathan N. Santelli sold 1,891 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, January 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.91, for a total transaction of $211,621.81. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now owns 21,491 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $2,405,057.81. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director Art A. Garcia purchased 879 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 9th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $112.30 per share, with a total value of $98,711.70. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now directly owns 879 shares in the company, valued at approximately $98,711.70. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. 9.74% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Raymond James Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:RJF opened at $121.94 on Thursday. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $121.96 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $111.32. Raymond James has a 52 week low of $82.00 and a 52 week high of $131.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.97, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The stock has a market capitalization of $25.49 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.28, a PEG ratio of 0.86 and a beta of 1.05.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.40 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.25 by $0.15. Raymond James had a return on equity of 17.95% and a net margin of 12.81%. The company had revenue of $3.01 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.01 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.29 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 8.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Raymond James will post 9.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Raymond James Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 15th. Investors of record on Monday, April 1st were given a $0.45 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 28th. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.48%. Raymond James’s dividend payout ratio is presently 22.56%.

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.