First Trust Advisors LP Cuts Holdings in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF)

First Trust Advisors LP decreased its position in shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF - Free Report) by 91.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 141,650 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,508,006 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.07% of Raymond James worth $22,002,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in RJF. TCTC Holdings LLC boosted its position in shares of Raymond James by 176.7% in the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 166 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares during the period. Y.D. More Investments Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 121.0% in the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 232 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd grew its position in shares of Raymond James by 1,142.1% during the fourth quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 236 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd increased its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 56.7% in the 4th quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 337 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $52,000 after acquiring an additional 122 shares during the period. Finally, Mizuho Bank Ltd. purchased a new stake in Raymond James in the 4th quarter valued at $53,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.83% of the company's stock.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Raymond James news, insider James E. Bunn sold 3,650 shares of Raymond James stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The stock was sold at an average price of $136.49, for a total value of $498,188.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 78,227 shares in the company, valued at $10,677,203.23. The trade was a 4.46 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. 0.54% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

RJF has been the subject of a number of research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of Raymond James from $176.00 to $143.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Bank of America downgraded Raymond James from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $159.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Wednesday. UBS Group upgraded Raymond James from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. JMP Securities reiterated a "market outperform" rating and issued a $175.00 price objective on shares of Raymond James in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Cowen restated a "hold" rating on shares of Raymond James in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Eleven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Raymond James has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $153.82.

Raymond James Price Performance

RJF stock traded up $4.02 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $141.73. 150,851 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,529,284. The stock has a market cap of $29.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.83, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 0.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.03. Raymond James has a fifty-two week low of $104.24 and a fifty-two week high of $174.32. The stock's 50-day moving average price is $139.09 and its 200-day moving average price is $151.92.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.42 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $2.44 by ($0.02). Raymond James had a return on equity of 19.71% and a net margin of 14.06%. The business had revenue of $3.40 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $3.46 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $2.31 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that Raymond James will post 11.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Raymond James Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st were paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.41%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 1st. Raymond James's payout ratio is currently 19.25%.

Raymond James Profile

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.