Daiwa Securities Group Inc. Buys 1,809 Shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF)

Daiwa Securities Group Inc. increased its position in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) by 9.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 21,201 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,809 shares during the quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc.’s holdings in Raymond James were worth $2,621,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Private Advisor Group LLC grew its position in shares of Raymond James by 3.6% during the 1st quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,682 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $344,000 after buying an additional 93 shares in the last quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC increased its position in Raymond James by 1.6% during the 2nd quarter. Gilliland Jeter Wealth Management LLC now owns 6,237 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $771,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Oarsman Capital Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 0.9% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Covestor Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 77.0% in the 1st quarter. Covestor Ltd now owns 239 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $31,000 after purchasing an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Systems of Alabama lifted its position in shares of Raymond James by 0.3% in the 1st 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 currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company assumed coverage on shares of Raymond James in a research note on Thursday. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $138.00 price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on Raymond James from $122.00 to $123.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, July 8th. 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 for the company in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of Raymond James from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Raymond James has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $130.70.

Insider Activity

In related news, CEO Tashtego S. Elwyn sold 31,277 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,879,063.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. In other news, EVP Bella Loykhter Allaire sold 17,363 shares of Raymond James stock in a transaction that occurred 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 transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Tashtego S. Elwyn sold 31,277 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 35,380 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $3,879,063.20. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders own 9.74% of the company’s stock.

Raymond James Trading Up 0.8 %

NYSE:RJF opened at $117.89 on Friday. 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 firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $115.16 and a 200-day simple moving average of $120.29. Raymond James has a 12 month low of $91.67 and a 12 month high of $131.19. The company has a market capitalization of $24.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.26, a PEG ratio of 0.79 and a beta of 1.02.

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

Raymond James Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, October 1st will be given a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.53%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James’s dividend payout ratio is presently 21.77%.

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.