Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) Stake Cut by Bank of America Corp DE

Bank of America Corp DE lowered its stake in shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF - Free Report) by 5.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,441,301 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 142,872 shares during the quarter. Bank of America Corp DE owned approximately 1.19% of Raymond James worth $379,207,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in RJF. BNP Paribas Financial Markets grew its holdings in Raymond James by 28.4% during the 4th quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 494,123 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $76,752,000 after acquiring an additional 109,300 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Raymond James in the fourth quarter worth about $430,000. Ancora Advisors LLC grew its stake in Raymond James by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Ancora Advisors LLC now owns 39,124 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $6,077,000 after purchasing an additional 600 shares in the last quarter. Aspire Growth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in Raymond James during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $249,000. Finally, AXA S.A. lifted its holdings in Raymond James by 5.6% during the 4th quarter. AXA S.A. now owns 2,700 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $419,000 after buying an additional 142 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 83.83% of the company's stock.

Raymond James Price Performance

Shares of RJF stock traded down $0.03 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $145.51. 917,564 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,301,630. The company's 50 day moving average price is $138.22 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $152.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a current ratio of 1.03. The company has a market cap of $29.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.20, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.02. Raymond James has a 12 month low of $104.24 and a 12 month high of $174.32.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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). The firm had revenue of $3.40 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.46 billion. Raymond James had a return on equity of 19.71% and a net margin of 14.06%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 9.0% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.31 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Raymond James will post 11.17 earnings per share for the current year.

Raymond James Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st were issued a $0.50 dividend. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 1st. Raymond James's payout ratio is 19.25%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on RJF. Bank of America downgraded Raymond James from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating and set a $159.00 price target for the company. in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on shares of Raymond James from $176.00 to $143.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, April 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on shares of Raymond James from $170.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a "market perform" rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of Raymond James from $149.00 to $143.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on Raymond James from $180.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 2nd. Eleven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $153.82.

Insider Activity

In other Raymond James news, insider James E. Bunn sold 3,650 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 28th. The shares were sold at an average price of $136.49, for a total transaction of $498,188.50. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 78,227 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $10,677,203.23. This represents a 4.46 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.54% of the company's stock.

About Raymond James

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.