Wells Fargo & Company Initiates Coverage on Raymond James (NYSE:RJF)

Wells Fargo & Company started coverage on shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) in a report published on Thursday, Marketbeat.com reports. The firm issued an overweight rating and a $138.00 price target on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also recently weighed in on RJF. Wolfe Research reaffirmed a peer perform rating on shares of Raymond James in a research report on Monday, July 8th. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Raymond James from $138.00 to $135.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on Raymond James from $122.00 to $123.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Monday, July 8th. TD Cowen boosted their price objective on Raymond James from $130.00 to $133.00 and gave the stock a hold rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on Raymond James from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an overweight rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, July 25th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Raymond James presently has an average rating of Hold and a consensus target price of $130.70.

Raymond James Trading Up 0.9 %

Shares of RJF opened at $116.98 on Thursday. Raymond James has a twelve month low of $91.67 and a twelve month high of $131.19. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.09 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $115.19 and its 200 day simple moving average is $120.29.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $2.39 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.31 by $0.08. The company had revenue of $3.23 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.24 billion. Raymond James had a return on equity of 18.44% and a net margin of 13.16%. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.85 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 11.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Raymond James will post 9.58 earnings per share for the current year.

Raymond James Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.54%. Raymond James’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 21.77%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Raymond James

In other news, CEO Tashtego S. Elwyn sold 31,277 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, August 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $109.64, for a total transaction of $3,429,210.28. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 35,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,879,063.20. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. In other Raymond James news, EVP Bella Loykhter Allaire sold 17,363 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $115.00, for a total transaction of $1,996,745.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 75,586 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,692,390. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Tashtego S. Elwyn sold 31,277 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $109.64, for a total transaction of $3,429,210.28. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 35,380 shares in the company, valued at approximately $3,879,063.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 9.74% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Raymond James

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its position in shares of Raymond James by 3.6% in the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,682 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $344,000 after acquiring an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in Raymond James by 1.6% in the second quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,237 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $771,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Oarsman Capital Inc. increased its stake in Raymond James by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Oarsman Capital Inc. now owns 10,760 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,200,000 after purchasing an additional 99 shares during the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 77.0% during the first quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 239 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares during the period. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 0.3% during the first quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 41,523 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $5,332,000 after purchasing an additional 107 shares during the period. 83.83% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

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.