JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has $853.48 Million Stake in Raymond James Financial, Inc. $RJF

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase reduced its stake in Raymond James Financial by 9.1% in the fourth quarter, though it still held 5.31 million shares worth about $853.5 million and remained one of the company’s largest institutional owners.
• Raymond James reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings of $2.83 per share, while revenue rose 13.4% year over year to $3.86 billion. The company also posted a strong 17.93% return on equity.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.54 per share payable July 15, and analysts currently rate the stock a consensus “Hold” with an average price target of $172.92.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. trimmed its holdings in Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE:RJF - Free Report) by 9.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,314,641 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 533,228 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned 2.70% of Raymond James Financial worth $853,478,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. First Trust Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Raymond James Financial by 4.5% in the third quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 2,597,519 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $448,332,000 after buying an additional 111,950 shares during the last quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP lifted its position in shares of Raymond James Financial by 10.7% in the third quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,357,328 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $406,941,000 after buying an additional 227,337 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Raymond James Financial in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $324,263,000. Bank of New York Mellon Corp lifted its position in shares of Raymond James Financial by 22.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 1,201,739 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $192,987,000 after buying an additional 216,907 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Harfst & Associates Inc. lifted its position in shares of Raymond James Financial by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Harfst & Associates Inc. now owns 1,067,120 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $171,369,000 after buying an additional 36,183 shares during the last quarter. 83.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Raymond James Financial news, insider Bella Loykhter Allaire sold 29,551 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $142.34, for a total transaction of $4,206,289.34. Following the transaction, the insider owned 53,586 shares in the company, valued at $7,627,431.24. This trade represents a 35.54% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.58% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Raymond James Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RJF opened at $151.29 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $29.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44. Raymond James Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $138.82 and a 1-year high of $177.66. The business's 50 day moving average is $150.52 and its 200-day moving average is $156.57.

Raymond James Financial (NYSE:RJF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $2.83 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.76 by $0.07. The company had revenue of $3.86 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.92 billion. Raymond James Financial had a return on equity of 17.93% and a net margin of 13.04%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 13.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.42 earnings per share. Equities research analysts predict that Raymond James Financial, Inc. will post 11.82 earnings per share for the current year.

Raymond James Financial Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, July 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, July 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.54 per share. This represents a $2.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.4%. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, July 1st. Raymond James Financial's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 20.42%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on RJF. Jefferies Financial Group cut their price objective on Raymond James Financial from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 6th. Barclays reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $182.00 price objective (up from $174.00) on shares of Raymond James Financial in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Raymond James Financial in a research report on Wednesday, May 20th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Raymond James Financial from $171.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 28th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets increased their target price on Raymond James Financial from $152.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 23rd. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and nine have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Raymond James Financial presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $172.92.

About Raymond James Financial

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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