Raymond James Financial Inc. Takes $11.94 Million Position in Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF)

Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 112,521 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $11,936,000.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Mather Group LLC. raised its holdings in Stifel Financial by 14.6% in the fourth quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 707 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $75,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc raised its stake in shares of Stifel Financial by 3.5% during the 3rd quarter. CIBC Asset Management Inc now owns 3,019 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $283,000 after acquiring an additional 102 shares in the last quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Stifel Financial by 26.6% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 528 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $56,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Stifel Financial by 46.5% during the fourth quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 457 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after acquiring an additional 145 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Stifel Financial by 10.1% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 1,642 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $174,000 after acquiring an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. 82.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Stifel Financial Price Performance

Shares of NYSE SF opened at $98.10 on Friday. Stifel Financial Corp. has a 52 week low of $73.51 and a 52 week high of $120.64. The business’s 50 day moving average price is $106.86 and its 200 day moving average price is $104.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.78, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The firm has a market cap of $10.18 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.72 and a beta of 1.08.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.27. Stifel Financial had a net margin of 14.00% and a return on equity of 16.59%. On average, sell-side analysts expect 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 was paid on Monday, March 17th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.88%. This is a positive change from Stifel Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Stifel Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.49%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently issued reports on SF shares. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Stifel Financial from $128.00 to $135.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research 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. JPMorgan Chase & Co. started coverage on Stifel Financial in a research note on Tuesday, December 10th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 price target on the stock. JMP Securities upped their price objective on shares of Stifel Financial from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Finally, Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Stifel Financial from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $117.71.

About Stifel Financial

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.