Argus Issues Positive Forecast for Raymond James Financial (NYSE:RJF) Stock Price

Raymond James Financial (NYSE:RJF) had its price target lifted by Argus from $178.00 to $196.00 in a research note released on Thursday,Benzinga reports. Argus currently has a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts have also weighed in on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Raymond James Financial from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Raymond James Financial from $175.00 to $179.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Raymond James Financial from $192.00 to $196.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Citigroup restated a “market outperform” rating on shares of Raymond James Financial in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen dropped their price target on Raymond James Financial from $162.00 to $161.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $181.00.

Raymond James Financial Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of Raymond James Financial stock opened at $175.00 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $158.84 and a 200-day simple moving average of $156.75. Raymond James Financial has a fifty-two week low of $138.82 and a fifty-two week high of $178.28. The firm has a market cap of $34.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.26, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.07 and a beta of 0.93. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Raymond James Financial (NYSE:RJF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $3.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.91 by $0.23. Raymond James Financial had a return on equity of 19.17% and a net margin of 13.57%.The firm had revenue of $3.93 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.87 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $2.18 earnings per share. Raymond James Financial’s revenue was up 15.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Raymond James Financial will post 12.04 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Raymond James Financial Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st were paid a dividend of $0.54 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, July 1st. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. Raymond James Financial’s dividend payout ratio is currently 18.83%.

Insider Activity

In other Raymond James Financial news, insider Tashtego S. Elwyn sold 10,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, July 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $176.06, for a total value of $1,760,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 45,114 shares in the company, valued at $7,942,770.84. This trade represents a 18.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Steven M. Raney sold 5,770 shares of Raymond James Financial stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $172.97, for a total transaction of $998,036.90. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 43,046 shares in the company, valued at approximately $7,445,666.62. This trade represents a 11.82% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.58% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Raymond James Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in RJF. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in Raymond James Financial during the 4th quarter valued at $324,263,000. First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in shares of Raymond James Financial by 18.3% in the fourth quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 3,071,996 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $493,332,000 after buying an additional 474,477 shares during the period. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab purchased a new position in shares of Raymond James Financial during the fourth quarter valued at $64,640,000. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Raymond James Financial by 40.0% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 1,096,731 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $176,124,000 after buying an additional 313,587 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Balyasny Asset Management L.P. raised its position in Raymond James Financial by 7,823.8% during the third quarter. Balyasny Asset Management L.P. now owns 288,583 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,809,000 after buying an additional 284,941 shares during the period. 83.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.