Westwood Holdings Group Inc. Boosts Holdings in Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR)

Key Points

• Westwood Holdings Group Inc. increased its stake in Piper Sandler Companies by 35%, owning 357,167 shares valued at approximately $88.46 million as of its latest SEC filing.
• Piper Sandler reported $2.95 EPS for the last quarter, surpassing estimates, with revenue of $405.39 million, increasing 13.4% year-over-year.
• The company announced a quarterly dividend increase to $0.70, up from $0.65, reflecting a 0.9% yield and a payout ratio of 21.94%.

Westwood Holdings Group Inc. boosted its stake in Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR - Free Report) by 35.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 357,167 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 92,527 shares during the quarter. Westwood Holdings Group Inc. owned about 2.01% of Piper Sandler Companies worth $88,456,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of PIPR. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Piper Sandler Companies by 39,239.4% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 108,970 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,988,000 after acquiring an additional 108,693 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. grew its position in Piper Sandler Companies by 17.2% during the fourth quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 697,824 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $209,312,000 after acquiring an additional 102,426 shares during the last quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Piper Sandler Companies by 16.8% in the first quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 250,507 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $62,041,000 after purchasing an additional 35,953 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of Piper Sandler Companies in the fourth quarter worth approximately $7,464,000. Finally, Fred Alger Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Piper Sandler Companies by 48.0% in the fourth quarter. Fred Alger Management LLC now owns 76,357 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $22,903,000 after purchasing an additional 24,757 shares during the last quarter. 72.79% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Piper Sandler Companies Trading Up 0.6%

PIPR stock traded up $1.83 on Friday, reaching $323.08. The company's stock had a trading volume of 130,381 shares, compared to its average volume of 169,732. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $288.74. Piper Sandler Companies has a 12-month low of $202.91 and a 12-month high of $351.80. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.26 and a beta of 1.50.

Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 company had revenue of $405.39 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $349.40 million. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.52 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, 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 declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 12th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be paid a $0.70 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This is a positive change from Piper Sandler Companies's previous quarterly dividend of $0.65. This represents a $2.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.9%. Piper Sandler Companies's payout ratio is 21.94%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PIPR. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Piper Sandler Companies from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. JMP Securities restated a "market perform" rating on shares of Piper Sandler Companies in a report on Monday, May 5th. Finally, Wolfe Research upgraded shares of Piper Sandler Companies from a "peer perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $339.00 target price on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 10th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Piper Sandler Companies news, CEO Chad R. Abraham sold 8,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $323.71, for a total transaction of $2,589,680.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 53,558 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $17,337,260.18. This trade represents a 13.00% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jonathan J. Doyle sold 3,536 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, August 4th. The shares were sold at an average price of $316.84, for a total value of $1,120,346.24. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 132,910 shares of the company's stock, valued at $42,111,204.40. This represents a 2.59% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 24,136 shares of company stock valued at $7,734,962 over the last quarter. 2.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Piper Sandler Companies

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.