Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $11.94 Million in Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF)

Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 112,521 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $11,936,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.11% of Stifel Financial as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Stifel Financial by 62.2% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 107,397 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $10,086,000 after acquiring an additional 41,171 shares during the last quarter. TT International Asset Management LTD purchased a new stake in Stifel Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $2,759,000. Larson Financial Group LLC grew its stake in shares of Stifel Financial by 4,308.9% in the 3rd quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC now owns 5,423 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $509,000 after buying an additional 5,300 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Stifel Financial in the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Finally, FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Stifel Financial by 18.8% during the 3rd quarter. FMR LLC now owns 7,956,412 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $747,107,000 after buying an additional 1,256,595 shares in the last quarter. 82.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Stifel Financial Stock Down 0.6 %

Shares of SF opened at $98.10 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.72 and a beta of 1.08. Stifel Financial Corp. has a 12-month low of $73.51 and a 12-month high of $120.64. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $106.86 and a 200-day moving average price of $104.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.23 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.27. Stifel Financial had a net margin of 14.00% and a return on equity of 16.59%. Equities research analysts expect that Stifel Financial Corp. will post 8.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Stifel Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This is an increase from Stifel Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.88%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Stifel Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.49%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

SF has been the subject of several recent research reports. StockNews.com upgraded Stifel Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Citigroup boosted their target price on Stifel Financial from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group raised their price target on Stifel Financial from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on shares of Stifel Financial from $128.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on shares of Stifel Financial in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 target price for the company. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $117.71.

Stifel Financial Company Profile

Stifel Financial Corp., a financial services and bank holding company, provides retail and institutional wealth management, and investment banking services to individual investors, corporations, municipalities, and institutions in the United States and internationally. It operates in three segments: Global Wealth Management, Institutional Group, and Other.