SEI Investments (NASDAQ:SEIC) Hits New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

SEI Investments Company (NASDAQ:SEIC - Get Free Report)'s stock price hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $103.75 and last traded at $103.14, with a volume of 871104 shares. The stock had previously closed at $101.52.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on SEIC shares. Zacks Research upgraded shares of SEI Investments from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price objective on shares of SEI Investments from $113.00 to $119.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 23rd. UBS Group reiterated a "buy" rating and set a $125.00 price objective on shares of SEI Investments in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Wall Street Zen upgraded SEI Investments from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Saturday. Finally, Morgan Stanley upped their target price on SEI Investments from $115.00 to $125.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating and six have assigned a Buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $122.60.

SEI Investments Price Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $12.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.19 and a beta of 0.97. The company has a quick ratio of 4.96, a current ratio of 5.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.06. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $92.14 and a 200-day simple moving average of $86.34.

SEI Investments (NASDAQ:SEIC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The asset manager reported $1.66 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.44 by $0.22. SEI Investments had a net margin of 28.85% and a return on equity of 29.16%. The business had revenue of $641.62 million during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $636.35 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.78 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that SEI Investments Company will post 6.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

SEI Investments Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, June 8th were given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 8th. This represents a yield of 118.0%. SEI Investments's dividend payout ratio is 18.34%.

Insider Buying and Selling at SEI Investments

In related news, insider Sanjay Sharma sold 20,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $99.33, for a total value of $1,986,600.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 39,829 shares of the company's stock, valued at $3,956,214.57. This represents a 33.43% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, Director Kathryn Mccarthy sold 10,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $91.07, for a total value of $910,700.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director directly owned 77,883 shares of the company's stock, valued at $7,092,804.81. This trade represents a 11.38% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 87,332 shares of company stock worth $7,900,543. 4.80% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SEIC. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in SEI Investments during the 4th quarter valued at $53,548,000. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of SEI Investments by 2,333.2% in the fourth quarter. Clark Capital Management Group Inc. now owns 645,859 shares of the asset manager's stock worth $52,973,000 after buying an additional 619,315 shares during the period. PFA Pension Forsikringsaktieselskab acquired a new stake in shares of SEI Investments in the fourth quarter worth $43,186,000. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd grew its holdings in shares of SEI Investments by 82.5% during the third quarter. Qube Research & Technologies Ltd now owns 766,775 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $65,061,000 after buying an additional 346,696 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec grew its holdings in shares of SEI Investments by 31.0% during the third quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 1,343,757 shares of the asset manager's stock valued at $114,018,000 after buying an additional 317,703 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 70.59% of the company's stock.

About SEI Investments

SEI Investments Company is a global provider of asset management, investment processing, and investment operations solutions. The firm offers a range of services designed to help financial institutions, private banks, wealth managers and family offices streamline back-office functions and enhance front-office capabilities. SEI's technology platforms support various stages of the investment lifecycle, including trade execution, performance reporting, risk analytics and client communications.

The company's core offerings include outsourced fund administration, custody and trust services, managed account solutions, and wealth management technology.

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