Maltese Capital Management LLC Purchases Shares of 17,000 Raymond James Financial, Inc. $RJF

Key Points

• Maltese Capital Management opened a new position in Raymond James Financial, buying 17,000 shares valued at about $2.73 million in the fourth quarter.
• Institutional interest in RJF remains strong, with hedge funds and other investors owning 83.83% of the company’s stock despite some mixed position changes and insider selling.
• Raymond James reported better-than-expected EPS of $2.83 in its latest quarter, and the company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.54 per share, yielding about 1.4%.

Maltese Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE:RJF - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 17,000 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $2,730,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. lifted its position in Raymond James Financial by 1.5% during the 2nd quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 4,076 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $625,000 after buying an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Raymond James Financial by 0.6% in the third quarter. Meridian Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,216 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,763,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the period. Salomon & Ludwin LLC grew its position 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 worth $42,000 after buying an additional 65 shares during the period. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in Raymond James Financial by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. Legacy Wealth Asset Management LLC now owns 2,782 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $447,000 after buying an additional 68 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgewater Advisors Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Raymond James Financial by 1.3% in the fourth quarter. Bridgewater Advisors Inc. now owns 5,261 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $892,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 83.83% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

RJF has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group reissued 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. TD Cowen decreased their price target on Raymond James Financial from $159.00 to $155.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, May 28th. BMO Capital Markets increased their price objective on Raymond James Financial from $152.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a 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. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price target on Raymond James Financial from $165.00 to $145.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 6th. Four investment 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, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $172.92.

Raymond James Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE RJF opened at $154.60 on Tuesday. Raymond James Financial, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $138.82 and a fifty-two week high of $177.66. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $151.30 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $156.55. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.13 billion, a PE ratio of 14.61, a P/E/G ratio of 1.19 and a beta of 0.94.

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

Raymond James Financial Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

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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