Private Capital Management LLC Decreases Stake in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF)

Private Capital Management LLC reduced its holdings in shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) by 5.4% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 59,885 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,432 shares during the quarter. Raymond James accounts for 1.5% of Private Capital Management LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Private Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Raymond James were worth $7,334,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of RJF. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. lifted its stake in Raymond James by 1.5% during the 3rd quarter. Coldstream Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,228 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $528,000 after acquiring an additional 64 shares during the period. CX Institutional raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. CX Institutional now owns 2,323 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $361,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 3.5% during the fourth quarter. Crestwood Advisors Group LLC now owns 1,982 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $308,000 after purchasing an additional 67 shares during the last quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC lifted its position in Raymond James by 0.5% during the fourth quarter. Stablepoint Partners LLC now owns 14,651 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,276,000 after purchasing an additional 73 shares during the period. Finally, Metis Global Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Raymond James by 1.4% in the third quarter. Metis Global Partners LLC now owns 6,115 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $749,000 after purchasing an additional 82 shares during the last quarter. 83.83% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Tashtego S. Elwyn sold 10,000 shares of Raymond James stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, December 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $159.47, for a total transaction of $1,594,700.00. Following the sale, the insider now owns 32,688 shares in the company, valued at $5,212,755.36. This trade represents a 23.43 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CEO Paul C. Reilly sold 50,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 2nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $167.30, for a total transaction of $8,365,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 283,110 shares in the company, valued at $47,364,303. This trade represents a 15.01 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders have sold 63,451 shares of company stock valued at $10,531,255. Corporate insiders own 0.54% of the company’s stock.

Raymond James Stock Performance

RJF opened at $151.58 on Friday. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $160.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $146.24. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.01. The firm has a market cap of $31.06 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.79, a PEG ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.03. Raymond James has a 1-year low of $104.24 and a 1-year high of $174.32.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.93 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.62 by $0.31. Raymond James had a net margin of 14.06% and a return on equity of 19.71%. Equities analysts forecast that Raymond James will post 11.17 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Raymond James Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.32%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. Raymond James’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 19.51%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on RJF shares. UBS Group upgraded shares of Raymond James from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday, January 6th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price objective on Raymond James from $168.00 to $176.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. StockNews.com cut Raymond James from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 10th. JMP Securities boosted their price target on Raymond James from $175.00 to $190.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Raymond James from $198.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Nine research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $166.09.

Raymond James Company Profile

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.