Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) Sets New 12-Month High – Time to Buy?

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) shares hit a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $163.45 and last traded at $161.65, with a volume of 239177 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $162.27.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on RJF shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their price target on shares of Raymond James from $132.00 to $145.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on shares of Raymond James from $137.00 to $135.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on shares of Raymond James from $140.00 to $152.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. JMP Securities upped their target price on shares of Raymond James from $146.00 to $150.00 and gave the company a “market outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Finally, Bank of America upped their target price on shares of Raymond James from $136.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 24th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Raymond James has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $140.91.

Raymond James Stock Down 1.0 %

The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $132.64 and its 200 day moving average price is $123.73. The firm has a market capitalization of $33.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.66, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 0.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.41, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Raymond James (NYSE:RJF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.41 by $0.54. The business had revenue of $3.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.32 billion. Raymond James had a net margin of 13.86% and a return on equity of 19.61%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.13 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Raymond James will post 10.73 EPS for the current year.

Raymond James Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, October 15th. Investors of record on Tuesday, October 1st were paid a dividend of $0.45 per share. This represents a $1.80 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.12%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, October 1st. Raymond James’s payout ratio is 18.54%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Raymond James

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Brooklyn Investment Group purchased a new position in Raymond James during the third quarter worth approximately $73,000. D.A. Davidson & CO. raised its stake in Raymond James by 9.4% during the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 5,391 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $660,000 after purchasing an additional 461 shares during the period. Qsemble Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Raymond James in the third quarter worth $791,000. Bank of Montreal Can increased its position in shares of Raymond James by 3.5% in the third quarter. Bank of Montreal Can now owns 275,189 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,700,000 after acquiring an additional 9,378 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Dynamic Technology Lab Private Ltd acquired a new stake in shares of Raymond James in the third quarter worth $1,508,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 83.83% of the company’s stock.

Raymond James Company Profile

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.