PJT Partners (NYSE:PJT) Posts Quarterly Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.18 EPS

Key Points

• PJT Partners reported earnings of $1.54 per share for the quarter, exceeding the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.43.
• The firm declared a quarterly dividend of $0.25 per share, representing a 0.56% annual yield.
• Several large investors have increased their holdings in PJT Partners, with 89.23% of the stock now owned by institutional investors.

PJT Partners (NYSE:PJT - Get Free Report) issued its earnings results on Tuesday. The financial services provider reported $1.54 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.36 by $0.18, Zacks reports. The company had revenue of $731.09 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $343.11 million. PJT Partners had a net margin of 10.45% and a return on equity of 25.47%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.19 EPS.

PJT Partners Price Performance

Shares of PJT traded up $0.70 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $178.22. 365,629 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 253,260. The company has a market cap of $4.35 billion, a PE ratio of 30.62 and a beta of 0.76. PJT Partners has a 52 week low of $116.06 and a 52 week high of $190.27. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $164.20 and a 200 day simple moving average of $154.67.

PJT Partners Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, September 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.25 per share. The ex-dividend date is Wednesday, September 3rd. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 0.56%. PJT Partners's dividend payout ratio is currently 17.64%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wolfe Research reiterated an "underperform" rating on shares of PJT Partners in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of PJT Partners from $161.00 to $199.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and five have given a hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, PJT Partners currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $164.00.

Insider Activity at PJT Partners

In related news, Director Kievdi Don Cornwell sold 10,403 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $150.29, for a total value of $1,563,466.87. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 8,847 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,329,615.63. This trade represents a 54.04% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, General Counsel David Adam Travin sold 5,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $141.74, for a total transaction of $708,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel directly owned 2,288 shares of the company's stock, valued at $324,301.12. This represents a 68.61% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 25,000 shares of company stock valued at $3,722,082 over the last ninety days. Company insiders own 11.75% of the company's stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PJT Partners

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PJT Partners by 5.6% during the first quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 370,536 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $51,090,000 after buying an additional 19,806 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its stake in PJT Partners by 8.6% in the first quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 66,559 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $9,177,000 after purchasing an additional 5,277 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC raised its stake in PJT Partners by 1,394.5% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 52,563 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,247,000 after purchasing an additional 49,046 shares in the last quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. raised its stake in PJT Partners by 4.7% in the first quarter. MIRAE ASSET GLOBAL ETFS HOLDINGS Ltd. now owns 13,887 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,915,000 after purchasing an additional 620 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Intech Investment Management LLC raised its stake in PJT Partners by 49.3% in the first quarter. Intech Investment Management LLC now owns 12,888 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,777,000 after purchasing an additional 4,256 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 89.23% of the company's stock.

PJT Partners Company Profile

PJT Partners Inc, an investment bank, provides various strategic and capital markets advisory, restructuring and special situations, and shareholder advisory services to corporations, financial sponsors, institutional investors, and governments worldwide. It offers advisory services to clients on various transactions, including mergers and acquisitions (M&A), spin-offs, activism defense, contested M&A, joint ventures, minority investments, and divestitures.