Piper Sandler Companies $PIPR Shares Acquired by MetLife Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• MetLife Investment Management LLC increased its stake in Piper Sandler Companies by 384.7%, owning 50,637 shares valued at approximately $12.5 million as of the latest SEC filing.
• Piper Sandler Companies announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.70 per share, up from $0.65, with plans for distribution on September 12th.
• The company reported better-than-expected earnings of $2.95 per share for the last quarter, surpassing analysts' estimates of $1.99 and seeing a 13.4% rise in revenue year-over-year.

MetLife Investment Management LLC raised its position in shares of Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR - Free Report) by 384.7% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 50,637 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 40,190 shares during the quarter. MetLife Investment Management LLC owned about 0.28% of Piper Sandler Companies worth $12,541,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Piper Sandler Companies by 28.6% in the 1st quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 216 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $53,000 after purchasing an additional 48 shares during the period. Lido Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Piper Sandler Companies by 1.2% during the 4th quarter. Lido Advisors LLC now owns 4,185 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,255,000 after acquiring an additional 49 shares during the last quarter. M&T Bank Corp lifted its stake in shares of Piper Sandler Companies by 6.6% during the 1st quarter. M&T Bank Corp now owns 874 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $217,000 after acquiring an additional 54 shares during the last quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its stake in shares of Piper Sandler Companies by 4.2% during the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 1,394 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $418,000 after acquiring an additional 56 shares during the last quarter. Finally, MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of Piper Sandler Companies by 131.9% during the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 109 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 72.79% of the company's stock.

Piper Sandler Companies Stock Down 1.5%

Shares of NYSE:PIPR traded down $4.95 on Friday, reaching $333.48. The company had a trading volume of 96,564 shares, compared to its average volume of 145,112. Piper Sandler Companies has a 52-week low of $202.91 and a 52-week high of $351.80. The business has a 50 day moving average of $310.97. The firm has a market capitalization of $5.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.14 and a beta of 1.50.

Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $2.95 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.96. Piper Sandler Companies had a return on equity of 18.67% and a net margin of 13.18%.The firm had revenue of $405.39 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $349.40 million. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $2.52 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts expect that Piper Sandler Companies will post 14.14 EPS for the current year.

Piper Sandler Companies Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a dividend of $0.70 per share. This is a positive change from Piper Sandler Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $2.80 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. Piper Sandler Companies's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.94%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. JMP Securities reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of Piper Sandler Companies in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Wolfe Research raised Piper Sandler Companies from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $339.00 target price for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Piper Sandler Companies from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $312.50.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, General Counsel John W. Geelan sold 2,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $322.69, for a total transaction of $645,380.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 12,645 shares in the company, valued at $4,080,415.05. The trade was a 13.66% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, CEO Chad R. Abraham sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.33, for a total value of $3,193,300.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 53,558 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,102,676.14. This trade represents a 15.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold 26,136 shares of company stock valued at $8,380,342 in the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 2.70% of the company's stock.

Piper Sandler Companies Company Profile

Piper Sandler Companies operates as an investment bank and institutional securities firm that serves corporations, private equity groups, public entities, non-profit entities, and institutional investors in the United States and internationally. It offers investment banking services and institutional sales, trading, and research services for various equity and fixed income products; advisory services, such as mergers and acquisitions, equity and debt private placements, and debt and restructuring advisory; raises capital through equity and debt financings; underwrites municipal issuances; and municipal financial advisory and loan placement services, as well as various over-the-counter derivative products.