Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Reduces Stock Position in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lessened its holdings in shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) by 20.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 21,944 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 5,632 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.’s holdings in Raymond James were worth $3,409,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC lifted its position in shares of Raymond James by 3,960.0% in the 3rd 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 during the period. Quarry LP purchased a new stake in Raymond James in the second quarter worth about $29,000. Future Financial Wealth Managment LLC purchased a new stake in Raymond James in the third quarter worth about $32,000. Gladius Capital Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Raymond James during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Peterson Financial Group Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Raymond James during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $37,000. Institutional investors own 83.83% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Raymond James

In other Raymond James news, insider Tashtego S. Elwyn sold 10,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.47, for a total transaction of $1,594,700.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 32,688 shares in the company, valued at $5,212,755.36. The trade was a 23.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bella Loykhter Allaire sold 3,451 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.62, for a total transaction of $571,554.62. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 80,421 shares in the company, valued at $13,319,326.02. This trade represents a 4.11 % 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. 0.54% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms recently weighed in on RJF. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on Raymond James from $123.00 to $126.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their target price on shares of Raymond James from $143.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a report on Friday, December 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group upgraded shares of Raymond James from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $161.00 to $185.00 in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Bank of America boosted their price objective on shares of Raymond James from $136.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on shares of Raymond James from $169.00 to $168.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 14th. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Raymond James has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $156.09.

Raymond James Stock Performance

RJF stock opened at $169.79 on Wednesday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $161.00 and its 200 day simple moving average is $137.35. 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 stock has a market capitalization of $34.70 billion, a PE ratio of 17.49, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.96 and a beta of 1.02.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.54. Raymond James had a return on equity of 19.30% and a net margin of 13.86%. The company had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $3.32 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. Raymond James’s revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts forecast that Raymond James will post 11 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Raymond James Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.18%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This is an increase from Raymond James’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. Raymond James’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 20.60%.

About Raymond James

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.