Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) Sees Strong Trading Volume

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) saw an uptick in trading volume on Wednesday . 1,887,525 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 81% from the previous session’s volume of 1,044,069 shares.The stock last traded at $112.21 and had previously closed at $113.51.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have recently commented on RJF. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on Raymond James from $113.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. JMP Securities reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of Raymond James in a report on Tuesday, April 9th. TD Cowen upped their target price on Raymond James from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered their target price on Raymond James from $132.00 to $131.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their target price on Raymond James from $145.00 to $141.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, April 25th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $129.89.

Raymond James Stock Performance

The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $121.63 and a 200-day simple moving average of $119.96. The company has a market capitalization of $23.51 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.76 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.01, a quick ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.43.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.31 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.32 by ($0.01). Raymond James had a net margin of 12.72% and a return on equity of 17.94%. The firm had revenue of $3.12 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.15 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.03 earnings per share. Raymond James’s revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Raymond James will post 9.53 earnings per share for the current year.

Raymond James Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, July 15th. Investors of record on Monday, July 1st were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, July 1st. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.59%. Raymond James’s payout ratio is currently 21.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Steven M. Raney sold 4,174 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.01, for a total transaction of $505,095.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 51,009 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,172,599.09. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, insider James E. Bunn sold 11,095 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $124.44, for a total value of $1,380,661.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 46,977 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,845,817.88. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Steven M. Raney sold 4,174 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, April 26th. The stock was sold at an average price of $121.01, for a total value of $505,095.74. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 51,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,172,599.09. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.74% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of RJF. American Century Companies Inc. grew its stake in shares of Raymond James by 26.0% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 165,966 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $16,668,000 after purchasing an additional 34,200 shares in the last quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 1.2% in the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 15,102 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,692,000 after buying an additional 176 shares during the period. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 49.5% in the fourth quarter. Gateway Investment Advisers LLC now owns 7,950 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $886,000 after buying an additional 2,631 shares during the period. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Raymond James in the fourth quarter valued at $140,000. Finally, Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 9.7% in the fourth quarter. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC now owns 2,679 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $300,000 after buying an additional 237 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 83.83% 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.