Wells Fargo & Company Cuts Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) Price Target to $168.00

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) had its price objective trimmed by Wells Fargo & Company from $169.00 to $168.00 in a research note issued to investors on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has an equal weight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also issued reports on RJF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $166.00 price target (up from $151.00) on shares of Raymond James in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Raymond James from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on shares of Raymond James from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. TD Cowen boosted their price target on shares of Raymond James from $128.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, JMP Securities increased their price objective on shares of Raymond James from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Nine analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $156.09.

Raymond James Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RJF opened at $164.89 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a quick ratio of 1.00 and a current ratio of 1.02. The firm has a market cap of $33.70 billion, a PE ratio of 16.98, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.02. Raymond James has a one year low of $104.24 and a one year high of $171.38. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $160.43 and a 200 day moving average of $135.96.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.54. Raymond James had a net margin of 13.86% and a return on equity of 19.30%. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.32 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $2.13 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Raymond James will post 10.99 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Raymond James Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, January 2nd were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a boost from Raymond James’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.21%. Raymond James’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.60%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Bella Loykhter Allaire sold 1,170 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 29th. The shares were 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 transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Paul C. Reilly sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, December 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $167.30, for a total value of $8,365,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 283,110 shares in the company, valued at approximately $47,364,303. The trade was a 15.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 64,621 shares of company stock valued at $10,729,488 in the last quarter. Insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Raymond James

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of RJF. Wellington Management Group LLP boosted its stake in shares of Raymond James by 31.4% in the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,114,502 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,483,542,000 after purchasing an additional 2,898,242 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in Raymond James by 0.7% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 7,974,740 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $976,587,000 after buying an additional 54,265 shares in the last quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Raymond James by 12.0% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 4,544,610 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $556,533,000 after acquiring an additional 488,245 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in shares of Raymond James by 0.3% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 4,351,684 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $531,013,000 after acquiring an additional 12,869 shares during the period. Finally, Earnest Partners LLC raised its stake in shares of Raymond James by 1.5% in the second quarter. Earnest Partners LLC now owns 2,505,369 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $309,689,000 after acquiring an additional 37,173 shares in the last quarter. 83.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.