Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. Sells 2,146 Shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF)

Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A. lowered its holdings in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF - Free Report) by 33.6% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 4,233 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 2,146 shares during the period. Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria S.A.'s holdings in Raymond James were worth $658,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the business. CX Institutional raised its holdings in Raymond James by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. CX Institutional now owns 2,323 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $361,000 after buying an additional 66 shares during the period. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,982 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $308,000 after acquiring an additional 67 shares during the period. Stablepoint Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of Raymond James by 0.5% in the 4th quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC now owns 14,651 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,276,000 after acquiring an additional 73 shares in the last quarter. Keybank National Association OH boosted its stake in Raymond James by 0.7% in the 4th quarter. Keybank National Association OH now owns 11,248 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,747,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA grew its position in Raymond James by 23.9% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 487 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $76,000 after purchasing an additional 94 shares in the last quarter. 83.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on RJF. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Raymond James from $198.00 to $173.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 3rd. JMP Securities reaffirmed a "market outperform" rating and set a $175.00 target price on shares of Raymond James in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on shares of Raymond James from $149.00 to $143.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of Raymond James from $176.00 to $143.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Raymond James from $149.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Eleven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $153.82.

Raymond James Stock Performance

RJF traded up $4.08 on Friday, hitting $141.79. The company had a trading volume of 780,418 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,296,651. The stock has a market cap of $29.05 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The company's fifty day moving average price is $138.90 and its 200 day moving average price is $152.19. Raymond James has a 1-year low of $104.24 and a 1-year high of $174.32.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.44 by ($0.02). The firm had revenue of $3.40 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.46 billion. Raymond James had a return on equity of 19.71% and a net margin of 14.06%. Raymond James's quarterly revenue was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.31 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Raymond James will post 11.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Raymond James Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st were given a dividend of $0.50 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.41%. Raymond James's dividend payout ratio is presently 19.25%.

Insider Activity at Raymond James

In related news, insider James E. Bunn sold 3,650 shares of Raymond James stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.49, for a total transaction of $498,188.50. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 78,227 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,677,203.23. This trade represents a 4.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Raymond James Profile

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.