Sapient Capital LLC Lowers Position in Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF)

Sapient Capital LLC decreased its stake in shares of Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF) by 7.0% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 2,594 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 195 shares during the quarter. Sapient Capital LLC’s holdings in Stifel Financial were worth $275,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mather Group LLC. increased its stake in Stifel Financial by 14.6% in the 4th quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 707 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $75,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc increased its position in Stifel Financial by 3.5% in the third quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,019 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $283,000 after purchasing an additional 102 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in Stifel Financial by 27.7% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 503 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $47,000 after purchasing an additional 109 shares in the last quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC raised its stake in Stifel Financial by 1.0% during the third quarter. Tributary Capital Management LLC now owns 12,603 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,183,000 after purchasing an additional 126 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its position in Stifel Financial by 3.8% during the third quarter. CWM LLC now owns 3,940 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $370,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. 82.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Stifel Financial Price Performance

Shares of SF stock opened at $107.92 on Thursday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $110.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $101.41. Stifel Financial Corp. has a 52-week low of $72.78 and a 52-week high of $120.64. 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 capitalization of $11.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.29 and a beta of 1.11.

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

Stifel Financial Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Investors of record on Monday, March 3rd will be issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This is a positive change from Stifel Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.70%. Stifel Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.92%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. TD Cowen upped their target price on shares of Stifel Financial from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective on Stifel Financial from $128.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. initiated coverage on Stifel Financial in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. UBS Group boosted their target price on Stifel Financial from $116.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, February 3rd. Finally, Citigroup raised their price target on Stifel Financial from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. Seven 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 presently has an average 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.