Allstate Corp Raises Stake in Raymond James Financial, Inc. $RJF

Key Points

• Allstate Corp more than doubled its position in Raymond James Financial, increasing its stake by 108.3% in the fourth quarter to 13,767 shares worth about $2.21 million.
• Analysts remain cautious overall: the stock has a Hold consensus rating, with 4 Buy ratings and 9 Hold ratings, though the average price target is $172.92.
• Raymond James Financial reported better-than-expected EPS of $2.83 in its latest quarter and also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.54 per share, payable July 15.

Allstate Corp grew its stake in shares of Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE:RJF - Free Report) by 108.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 13,767 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 7,158 shares during the quarter. Allstate Corp's holdings in Raymond James Financial were worth $2,211,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new stake in Raymond James Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $32,000. Anfield Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Raymond James Financial in the third quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC boosted its stake in Raymond James Financial by 452.6% in the fourth quarter. Harbor Investment Advisory LLC now owns 210 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $34,000 after acquiring an additional 172 shares in the last quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Raymond James Financial by 34.8% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 252 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $42,000 after purchasing an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eagle Bay Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Raymond James Financial during the 4th quarter worth $44,000. 83.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages recently commented on RJF. UBS Group reaffirmed a "neutral" rating and issued a $166.00 price objective (up from $158.00) on shares of Raymond James Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Raymond James Financial in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. BMO Capital Markets raised their price target on shares of Raymond James Financial from $152.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on Raymond James Financial from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 6th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price objective on Raymond James Financial from $159.00 to $155.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $172.92.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Bella Loykhter Allaire sold 29,551 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.34, for a total value of $4,206,289.34. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 53,586 shares in the company, valued at $7,627,431.24. This represents a 35.54% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.58% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Raymond James Financial Price Performance

NYSE:RJF opened at $142.28 on Friday. Raymond James Financial, Inc. has a 12 month low of $138.82 and a 12 month high of $177.66. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $149.81 and a two-hundred day moving average of $157.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. The firm has a market cap of $27.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.11 and a beta of 0.99.

Raymond James Financial (NYSE:RJF - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.83 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.76 by $0.07. Raymond James Financial had a return on equity of 17.93% and a net margin of 13.04%.The company had revenue of $3.86 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.92 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.42 EPS. Raymond James Financial's quarterly revenue was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, analysts expect that Raymond James Financial, Inc. will post 11.83 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Raymond James Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be given a $0.54 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 1st. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.5%. Raymond James Financial's dividend payout ratio is 20.42%.

Raymond James Financial Company Profile

Raymond James Financial is a diversified financial services firm headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida. Founded in 1962, the company provides a range of services to individual investors, businesses and institutions through a combination of wealth management, capital markets, investment banking, asset management, banking and trust services. Its business model centers on a network of financial advisors and broker-dealer operations that deliver personalized financial planning, investment advisory services and brokerage solutions.

The firm's core offerings include private client wealth management delivered by independent and employee advisors, equity and fixed-income research, institutional sales and trading, and investment banking services such as mergers and acquisitions advisory and capital raising.

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