Axiom Investors LLC DE Has $23.08 Million Stock Holdings in Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF)

Axiom Investors LLC DE boosted its position in Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF) by 4.8% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 217,567 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 10,039 shares during the period. Axiom Investors LLC DE owned approximately 0.21% of Stifel Financial worth $23,080,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in SF. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Stifel Financial during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $137,448,000. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its stake in Stifel Financial by 78.3% during the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 1,958,709 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $183,923,000 after purchasing an additional 860,465 shares in the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Stifel Financial in the fourth quarter valued at $162,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Stifel Financial during the fourth quarter valued at about $11,936,000. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its holdings in shares of Stifel Financial by 45.3% during the fourth quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 299,261 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,746,000 after buying an additional 93,341 shares during the last quarter. 82.01% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Stifel Financial Stock Performance

Shares of SF stock opened at $93.92 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a current ratio of 0.82. The firm has a market cap of $9.74 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.05 and a beta of 1.08. Stifel Financial Corp. has a 52 week low of $73.51 and a 52 week high of $120.64. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $105.66 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $105.27.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.96 by $0.27. Stifel Financial had a net margin of 14.00% and a return on equity of 16.59%. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Stifel Financial Corp. will post 8.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Stifel Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a $0.46 dividend. This is a boost from Stifel Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.96%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 3rd. Stifel Financial’s payout ratio is currently 29.49%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently weighed in on SF. UBS Group raised their price target on shares of Stifel Financial from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Stifel Financial in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 target price on the stock. JMP Securities upped their price target on Stifel Financial from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com upgraded Stifel Financial from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Stifel Financial from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $117.71.

Stifel Financial Company Profile

Stifel Financial Corp., a financial services and bank holding company, provides retail and institutional wealth management, and investment banking services to individual investors, corporations, municipalities, and institutions in the United States and internationally. It operates in three segments: Global Wealth Management, Institutional Group, and Other.