57,230 Shares in Stifel Financial Corporation $SF Bought by North Reef Capital Management LP

Key Points

• North Reef Capital Management initiated a new position in Stifel Financial during the first quarter, buying 57,230 shares worth about $4.23 million.
• Stifel Financial reported strong quarterly earnings, with EPS of $1.42 and revenue of $1.45 billion, both ahead of analyst expectations; revenue also rose 13% year over year.
• Analysts remain broadly constructive on the stock, with an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average price target of $91.67, while the shares recently traded around $80.70.

North Reef Capital Management LP bought a new position in shares of Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE:SF - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 57,230 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $4,230,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. raised its position in shares of Stifel Financial by 15.0% during the fourth quarter. Brown Brothers Harriman & Co. now owns 811 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $102,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Stifel Financial by 0.5% during the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 23,449 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,936,000 after purchasing an additional 114 shares in the last quarter. Principal Securities Inc. grew its position in shares of Stifel Financial by 6.9% in the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,926 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $241,000 after purchasing an additional 124 shares during the period. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Stifel Financial by 3.8% in the 3rd quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 3,642 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $413,000 after purchasing an additional 134 shares during the period. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its stake in Stifel Financial by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 7,811 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $978,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. 82.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages have commented on SF. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Stifel Financial from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Stifel Financial in a report on Friday, May 29th. UBS Group set a $90.00 price objective on shares of Stifel Financial in a research report on Thursday. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Stifel Financial from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Stifel Financial has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $91.67.

Stifel Financial Stock Up 1.4%

SF stock opened at $80.70 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.44 and a beta of 1.01. Stifel Financial Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $67.81 and a fifty-two week high of $89.83. The business has a 50-day moving average of $73.36 and a 200-day moving average of $76.83.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $1.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.42 billion. Stifel Financial had a return on equity of 19.32% and a net margin of 16.11%.Stifel Financial's revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.71 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Stifel Financial Corporation will post 6.29 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stifel Financial Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were issued a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Stifel Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 24.33%.

Stifel Financial Profile

Stifel Financial Corp. is a diversified financial services holding company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1890, the firm has grown into a full‐service brokerage and investment banking organization serving individual investors, corporations and institutions. Through its principal subsidiary, Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, the company delivers a broad array of financial products and services backed by research‐driven insights.

The firm's main business activities are organized into two core segments: Private Client Group and Institutional Group.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding SF? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE:SF - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.