Avity Investment Management Inc. Reduces Position in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF)

Avity Investment Management Inc. trimmed its stake in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) by 1.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 149,376 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 2,403 shares during the quarter. Raymond James makes up 1.8% of Avity Investment Management Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 28th biggest holding. Avity Investment Management Inc. owned approximately 0.07% of Raymond James worth $23,203,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Moseley Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in Raymond James in the 4th quarter valued at about $221,000. Park Avenue Securities LLC grew its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 33.6% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 13,579 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,109,000 after buying an additional 3,414 shares in the last quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 4.5% during the fourth quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,329 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $517,000 after buying an additional 143 shares in the last quarter. SeaCrest Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Raymond James in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $204,000. Finally, Friedenthal Financial purchased a new position in shares of Raymond James during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $837,000. 83.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Raymond James Stock Performance

Raymond James stock opened at $156.89 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $32.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.16, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.91 and a beta of 1.02. Raymond James has a 12 month low of $104.24 and a 12 month high of $171.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $160.21 and its 200-day moving average is $135.54.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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. The firm had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.32 billion. Raymond James had a net margin of 13.86% and a return on equity of 19.30%. Raymond James’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.13 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate 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 issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This is a positive change from Raymond James’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.27%. Raymond James’s payout ratio is presently 20.60%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on RJF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted 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 note on Friday, December 20th. TD Cowen lifted their price objective on Raymond James from $128.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Bank of America upped their target price on Raymond James from $136.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. JMP Securities raised their price target on Raymond James from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective 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. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Raymond James has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $156.09.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Raymond James news, insider Bella Loykhter Allaire sold 3,451 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, December 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $165.62, for a total value 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 represents a 4.11 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Tashtego S. Elwyn sold 10,000 shares of Raymond James stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.47, for a total transaction of $1,594,700.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 32,688 shares in the company, valued at $5,212,755.36. This represents a 23.43 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 64,621 shares of company stock valued at $10,729,488. Company insiders own 9.74% of the company’s stock.

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.