Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE:RJF) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE:RJF) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the thirteen research firms that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year target price among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $173.25.

A number of brokerages have commented on RJF. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Raymond James Financial from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. BMO Capital Markets lifted their target price on Raymond James Financial from $152.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. TD Cowen restated a “hold” rating and issued a $159.00 target price (up from $156.00) on shares of Raymond James Financial in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings upgraded Raymond James Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Finally, UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating and issued a $166.00 target price (up from $158.00) on shares of Raymond James Financial in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd.

Raymond James Financial Stock Up 0.9%

NYSE:RJF opened at $155.67 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $30.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.71, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 1.00. Raymond James Financial has a one year low of $133.89 and a one year high of $177.66. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $149.76 and a 200 day simple moving average of $158.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 1.04 and a current ratio of 1.06.

Raymond James Financial (NYSE:RJF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.07. The business had revenue of $3.86 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.92 billion. Raymond James Financial had a return on equity of 18.01% and a net margin of 13.04%.The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.42 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Raymond James Financial will post 11.73 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Raymond James Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 1st were paid a $0.54 dividend. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 1st. Raymond James Financial’s payout ratio is presently 20.42%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Raymond James Financial news, insider Bella Loykhter Allaire sold 29,551 shares of Raymond James Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.34, for a total value of $4,206,289.34. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 53,586 shares in the company, valued at $7,627,431.24. The trade was a 35.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Raymond James Financial

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James Financial by 1.5% during the second quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 4,076 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $625,000 after buying an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James Financial by 0.6% during the third quarter. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,216 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,763,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James Financial by 2.0% during the third quarter. Tectonic Advisors LLC now owns 3,264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $563,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James Financial by 34.8% during the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $42,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James Financial by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 2,782 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $447,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.83% of the company’s stock.

About Raymond James Financial

Raymond James Financial is a diversified financial services firm headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida. Founded in 1962, the company provides a range of services to individual investors, businesses and institutions through a combination of wealth management, capital markets, investment banking, asset management, banking and trust services. Its business model centers on a network of financial advisors and broker-dealer operations that deliver personalized financial planning, investment advisory services and brokerage solutions.

The firm’s core offerings include private client wealth management delivered by independent and employee advisors, equity and fixed-income research, institutional sales and trading, and investment banking services such as mergers and acquisitions advisory and capital raising.