Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen upgraded Stifel Financial from “hold” to “buy,” contributing to an overall MarketBeat analyst consensus of “Moderate Buy” from five Buy and four Hold ratings.
• Stifel Financial reported quarterly EPS of $1.42, beating estimates of $1.33, while revenue rose 13% year over year to $1.45 billion. Analysts’ average price target is $91.90, compared with a share price of $83.08.
• Director Maryam S. Brown sold 4,700 shares for approximately $372,240, reducing her position by 45.07%; institutional investors nevertheless own 82.01% of the company.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note issued on Saturday.

SF has been the subject of several other reports. Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b-)" rating on shares of Stifel Financial in a research report on Friday, May 29th. UBS Group set a $90.00 price target on Stifel Financial in a research note on Thursday, July 23rd. Zacks Research raised Stifel Financial from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Stifel Financial from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Thursday, July 23rd. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $91.90.

Stifel Financial Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of Stifel Financial stock opened at $83.08 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.80. Stifel Financial has a 1 year low of $67.81 and a 1 year high of $89.83. The firm has a market cap of $12.74 billion, a PE ratio of 14.87 and a beta of 1.01. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $74.37 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $76.67.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.42 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.33 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $1.45 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.42 billion. Stifel Financial had a net margin of 16.11% and a return on equity of 19.32%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.71 EPS. Analysts expect that Stifel Financial will post 6.36 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Stifel Financial

In other news, Director Maryam S. Brown sold 4,700 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Thursday, July 23rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $79.20, for a total value of $372,240.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 5,729 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $453,736.80. This represents a 45.07% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 3.36% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stifel Financial

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SF. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in Stifel Financial during the third quarter valued at about $29,000. Activest Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Stifel Financial by 12,000.0% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 242 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 240 shares during the period. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in shares of Stifel Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd lifted its stake in shares of Stifel Financial by 49.8% in the 1st quarter. JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd now owns 481 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new stake in Stifel Financial during the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 82.01% of the company's stock.

About Stifel Financial

Stifel Financial Corp. is a diversified financial services holding company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1890, the firm has grown into a full‐service brokerage and investment banking organization serving individual investors, corporations and institutions. Through its principal subsidiary, Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, the company delivers a broad array of financial products and services backed by research‐driven insights.

The firm's main business activities are organized into two core segments: Private Client Group and Institutional Group.

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