Norges Bank Takes $294.65 Million Position in Raymond James (NYSE:RJF)

Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,896,910 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $294,647,000. Norges Bank owned 0.93% of Raymond James as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in RJF. TCTC Holdings LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Raymond James by 176.7% during the 4th quarter. TCTC Holdings LLC now owns 166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Y.D. More Investments Ltd lifted its holdings in Raymond James by 121.0% in the fourth quarter. Y.D. More Investments Ltd now owns 232 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $36,000 after acquiring an additional 127 shares during the period. Plato Investment Management Ltd lifted its holdings in Raymond James by 1,142.1% in the fourth quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd now owns 236 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $37,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the period. Quarry LP boosted its position in Raymond James by 80.3% in the third quarter. Quarry LP now owns 420 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 187 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new stake in shares of Raymond James during the 4th quarter valued at about $68,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.83% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on RJF shares. Bank of America increased their price objective on shares of Raymond James from $198.00 to $201.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 30th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on shares of Raymond James from $168.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 30th. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Raymond James from $149.00 to $161.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Citigroup raised their target price on Raymond James from $145.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, January 10th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised Raymond James from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $161.00 to $185.00 in a report on Monday, January 6th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Raymond James has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $167.55.

Raymond James Stock Performance

NYSE:RJF opened at $138.97 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $155.00 and a 200 day moving average price of $150.42. 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 has a 12-month low of $104.24 and a 12-month high of $174.32. The stock has a market capitalization of $28.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.56, a P/E/G ratio of 0.90 and a beta of 1.04.

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

Raymond James Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, April 15th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, April 1st will be issued a $0.50 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 1st. This represents a $2.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.44%. Raymond James’s dividend payout ratio is currently 19.51%.

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.