Guinness Asset Management LTD Buys 1,170 Shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF)

Guinness Asset Management LTD increased its stake in shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) by 36.0% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 4,418 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,170 shares during the period. Guinness Asset Management LTD’s holdings in Raymond James were worth $686,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Tashtego S. Elwyn sold 10,000 shares of Raymond James stock in a transaction on Friday, December 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $159.47, for a total value of $1,594,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 32,688 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,212,755.36. This trade represents a 23.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, insider Bella Loykhter Allaire sold 3,451 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated 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 of the company’s stock, valued at $13,319,326.02. This represents a 4.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 64,621 shares of company stock worth $10,729,488 in the last ninety days. 0.54% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Raymond James Stock Performance

RJF stock opened at $167.00 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $34.13 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.20, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 1.02. Raymond James has a twelve month low of $104.24 and a twelve month high of $171.38. The company has a quick ratio of 1.00, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.37. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $160.77 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $136.67.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.41 by $0.54. The company had revenue of $3.46 billion during 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%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.13 EPS. Analysts predict that Raymond James will post 10.99 earnings per share for the current year.

Raymond James Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, January 16th. Investors of record on Thursday, January 2nd were issued a $0.50 dividend. This is a positive change from Raymond James’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.45. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, January 2nd. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.20%. Raymond James’s payout ratio is presently 20.60%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms recently weighed in on RJF. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Raymond James from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $161.00 to $185.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. UBS Group upgraded Raymond James from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on 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 target price on Raymond James from $128.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, October 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Raymond James from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. Nine equities research 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 MarketBeat.com, Raymond James currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $156.09.

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.