LPL Financial LLC Grows Stock Holdings in Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE:SF)

Key Points

• LPL Financial LLC increased its stake in Stifel Financial Corporation by 8.1%, acquiring 4,712 additional shares, bringing its total ownership to approximately 0.06% of Stifel Financial worth $5.9 million.
• Stifel Financial reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the latest quarter, exceeding analysts' expectations and showing a year-over-year revenue increase of 5.4%.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share, reflecting an annualized yield of 1.6%, with a payout ratio of 35.66%.

LPL Financial LLC grew its position in Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE:SF - Free Report) by 8.1% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 62,654 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 4,712 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC owned about 0.06% of Stifel Financial worth $5,906,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. NBC Securities Inc. purchased a new stake in Stifel Financial during the first quarter worth about $26,000. Alpine Bank Wealth Management purchased a new stake in Stifel Financial during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its position in Stifel Financial by 52.1% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 321 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $34,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB raised its position in Stifel Financial by 123.6% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 331 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Allworth Financial LP raised its position in Stifel Financial by 67.7% during the first quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 337 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 136 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.01% of the company's stock.

Stifel Financial Trading Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:SF traded down $0.45 during trading on Thursday, reaching $115.79. The stock had a trading volume of 697,462 shares, compared to its average volume of 745,610. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $106.52 and a 200-day moving average price of $99.92. The company has a quick ratio of 0.77, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28. The stock has a market cap of $11.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.44 and a beta of 1.11. Stifel Financial Corporation has a fifty-two week low of $73.27 and a fifty-two week high of $120.64.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $1.71 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.65 by $0.06. Stifel Financial had a net margin of 11.90% and a return on equity of 13.93%. The firm had revenue of $1.28 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $1.60 earnings per share. Stifel Financial's revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that Stifel Financial Corporation will post 8.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stifel Financial Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Investors of record on Tuesday, September 2nd will be issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, September 2nd. Stifel Financial's payout ratio is presently 35.66%.

Insider Transactions at Stifel Financial

In related news, Director Michael J. Zimmerman sold 10,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $96.69, for a total value of $966,900.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 45,833 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,431,592.77. The trade was a 17.91% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 3.28% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on SF. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Stifel Financial from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, August 3rd. JMP Securities lifted their target price on shares of Stifel Financial from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "market outperform" rating in a research report on Monday, July 14th. Stifel Nicolaus set a $135.00 target price on shares of Stifel Financial in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on shares of Stifel Financial from $102.00 to $125.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 11th. Finally, Citigroup upgraded shares of Stifel Financial from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $115.00 to $135.00 in a research report on Thursday, July 31st. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $115.78.

Stifel Financial Company Profile

Stifel Financial Corp., a financial services and bank holding company, provides retail and institutional wealth management, and investment banking services to individual investors, corporations, municipalities, and institutions in the United States and internationally. It operates in three segments: Global Wealth Management, Institutional Group, and Other.