Blue Trust Inc. Purchases 1,047 Shares of Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF)

Blue Trust Inc. lifted its position in shares of Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF) by 26.1% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 5,064 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,047 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in Stifel Financial were worth $537,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Waldron Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Stifel Financial during the third quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake 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 buying an additional 145 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 buying an additional 109 shares during the last quarter. UMB Bank n.a. boosted its holdings in Stifel Financial by 36.6% in the third quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 870 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $82,000 after acquiring an additional 233 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Farther Finance Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Stifel Financial by 148.1% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 1,201 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $113,000 after acquiring an additional 717 shares during the last quarter. 82.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Stifel Financial Trading Up 0.2 %

NYSE:SF opened at $117.76 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $12.05 billion, a PE ratio of 21.29 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.27. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $110.84 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $99.57. Stifel Financial Corp. has a 12 month low of $71.36 and a 12 month high of $120.64.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $2.23 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.96 by $0.27. Stifel Financial had a return on equity of 14.92% and a net margin of 12.98%. Research analysts forecast that Stifel Financial Corp. will post 6.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Stifel Financial Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 17th. Stockholders of record on Monday, March 3rd will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, March 3rd. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.56%. This is a positive change from Stifel Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. Stifel Financial’s dividend payout ratio is presently 30.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

SF has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Stifel Financial from $100.00 to $105.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 24th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Stifel Financial from $128.00 to $135.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. assumed coverage on shares of Stifel Financial in a report on Tuesday, December 10th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $120.00 price objective for the company. JMP Securities increased their target price on Stifel Financial from $125.00 to $135.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Stifel Financial from $110.00 to $115.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, January 10th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $117.33.

Insider Transactions at Stifel Financial

In related news, COO David D. Sliney sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $116.18, for a total value of $2,904,500.00. Following the transaction, the chief operating officer now directly owns 159,619 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $18,544,535.42. This trade represents a 13.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Company insiders own 4.57% of the company’s stock.

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.