Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) Shares Sold by State of Michigan Retirement System

State of Michigan Retirement System reduced its position in shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) by 1.6% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The fund owned 49,644 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 800 shares during the quarter. State of Michigan Retirement System’s holdings in Raymond James were worth $7,711,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in Raymond James by 1.6% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 568,070 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $73,940,000 after purchasing an additional 9,217 shares during the last quarter. J.W. Cole Advisors Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Raymond James in the 4th quarter valued at about $511,000. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise bought a new stake in shares of Raymond James during the 3rd quarter valued at about $3,561,000. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. raised its stake in Raymond James by 1.5% during the third quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Group Inc. now owns 473,140 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $57,941,000 after acquiring an additional 7,028 shares during the period. Finally, UMB Bank n.a. raised its stake in Raymond James by 7,238.7% during the fourth quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 45,353 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $7,045,000 after acquiring an additional 44,735 shares during the period. 83.83% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Raymond James Stock Up 1.2 %

RJF stock opened at $145.98 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $160.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $147.45. The company has a market capitalization of $29.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.04. Raymond James has a 52 week low of $104.24 and a 52 week high of $174.32. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

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

Raymond James Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.50 per share. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.37%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 1st. Raymond James’s payout ratio is currently 19.51%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have commented on RJF. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on Raymond James from $170.00 to $177.00 and gave the company a “market perform” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Raymond James from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, January 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Raymond James from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $161.00 to $185.00 in a research report on Monday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Raymond James from $149.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of Raymond James from $168.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, January 30th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $167.55.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 value of $1,594,700.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 32,688 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,212,755.36. The trade was a 23.43 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 0.54% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.