State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D Trims Stock Holdings in Raymond James Financial, Inc. $RJF

Key Points

• The State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D has reduced its stake in Raymond James Financial, Inc. by 10.7%, resulting in ownership of 63,620 shares valued at approximately $8.84 million.
• An analysis of market performance reveals that analysts have varied outlooks on Raymond James Financial, with Bank of America downgrading the stock to "neutral" while firms like JMP Securities and Wells Fargo have raised their price targets.
• Raymond James Financial reported a Q2 EPS of $2.18, which missed expectations, while the company also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.50, translating to an annual yield of 1.2%.

State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D trimmed its position in shares of Raymond James Financial, Inc. (NYSE:RJF - Free Report) by 10.7% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 63,620 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 7,632 shares during the quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D's holdings in Raymond James Financial were worth $8,837,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of RJF. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. purchased a new position in Raymond James Financial during the 1st quarter valued at about $25,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Raymond James Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $27,000. Golden State Wealth Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Raymond James Financial by 164.0% in the 1st quarter. Golden State Wealth Management LLC now owns 198 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $28,000 after buying an additional 123 shares during the period. Olde Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Raymond James Financial in the 1st quarter valued at about $33,000. Finally, TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its stake in shares of Raymond James Financial by 72.9% in the 1st quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 287 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $40,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. 83.83% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Raymond James Financial Stock Performance

RJF traded up $3.1490 during trading on Friday, hitting $165.1790. 677,938 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 922,189. The firm has a market capitalization of $32.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.19, a PEG ratio of 1.33 and a beta of 1.05. Raymond James Financial, Inc. has a 1-year low of $113.91 and a 1-year high of $174.32. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $159.87 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $150.07. The company has a quick ratio of 1.02, a current ratio of 1.04 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.33.

Raymond James Financial (NYSE:RJF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.18 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $2.36 by ($0.18). The firm had revenue of $3.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.38 billion. Raymond James Financial had a return on equity of 18.38% and a net margin of 13.56%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 5.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.39 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Raymond James Financial, Inc. will post 11.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Raymond James Financial Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, October 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, October 1st. Raymond James Financial's dividend payout ratio is currently 19.61%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on RJF shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on Raymond James Financial from $155.00 to $163.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 11th. JMP Securities lifted their price objective on Raymond James Financial from $175.00 to $180.00 and gave the company a "market outperform" rating in a research note on Monday, July 14th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on Raymond James Financial from $167.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Bank of America cut Raymond James Financial from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $159.00 target price for the company. in a research note on Wednesday, April 30th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on Raymond James Financial from $136.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, three have assigned a Buy rating and eight have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $163.80.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Bella Loykhter Allaire sold 6,570 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $146.61, for a total transaction of $963,227.70. Following the transaction, the insider owned 74,586 shares of the company's stock, valued at $10,935,053.46. This represents a 8.10% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Raymond James Financial

Raymond James Financial, Inc, a financial holding company, through its subsidiaries, engages in the underwriting, distribution, trading, and brokerage of equity and debt securities, and the sale of mutual funds and other investment products in the United States, Canada, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through Private Client Group, Capital Markets, Asset Management, RJ Bank, and Other segments.