Brokerages Set Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) Target Price at $152.73

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the twelve brokerages that are covering the stock, Marketbeat.com reports. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $156.18.

Several analysts have issued reports on RJF shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Raymond James from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $161.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Raymond James from $143.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “market perform” rating in a research report on Friday, December 20th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of Raymond James from $123.00 to $126.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. JMP Securities raised their target price on shares of Raymond James from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $166.00 target price (up from $151.00) on shares of Raymond James in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th.

Raymond James Stock Down 3.1 %

Shares of NYSE:RJF opened at $154.41 on Thursday. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. Raymond James has a 12 month low of $104.24 and a 12 month high of $171.38. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $160.03 and a 200 day moving average price of $135.22. The company has a market cap of $31.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.90, a PEG ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.02.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.95 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.54. The business had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.32 billion. Raymond James had a net margin of 13.86% and a return on equity of 19.30%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $2.13 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Raymond James will post 10.85 earnings per share for the current year.

Raymond James Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd will be given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, January 2nd. This is an increase from Raymond James’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.30%. Raymond James’s payout ratio is currently 20.60%.

Insider Activity at Raymond James

In other Raymond James news, insider Tashtego S. Elwyn sold 10,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.47, for a total value of $1,594,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 32,688 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,212,755.36. This represents a 23.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Bella Loykhter Allaire sold 1,170 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $169.43, for a total transaction of $198,233.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 80,421 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $13,625,730.03. This trade represents a 1.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 64,621 shares of company stock worth $10,729,488 over the last three months. Company insiders own 9.74% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Raymond James

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC increased its stake in shares of Raymond James by 3,960.0% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 203 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $25,000 after purchasing an additional 198 shares in the last quarter. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in shares of Raymond James during the second quarter worth about $29,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC acquired a new stake in Raymond James in the 3rd quarter valued at about $32,000. Gladius Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in Raymond James in the 3rd quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. acquired a new stake in Raymond James in the 3rd quarter valued at about $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.83% of the company’s stock.

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.