Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE:SF) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE:SF) have been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the ten ratings firms that are presently covering the company, Marketbeat.com reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $91.1481.

A number of research analysts recently weighed in on SF shares. TD Cowen dropped their price target on Stifel Financial from $136.00 to $92.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 23rd. Zacks Research raised Stifel Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, May 20th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on Stifel Financial from $100.00 to $89.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised Stifel Financial from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Monday, March 2nd.

Stifel Financial Stock Down 2.8%

SF stock opened at $70.62 on Thursday. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $75.28 and its 200 day simple moving average is $79.53. Stifel Financial has a fifty-two week low of $61.21 and a fifty-two week high of $89.83. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29, a quick ratio of 0.80 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $10.83 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.74 and a beta of 1.05.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.45 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.06. Stifel Financial had a return on equity of 18.76% and a net margin of 15.34%.The business had revenue of $1.44 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.51 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.49 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 17.7% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts expect that Stifel Financial will post 6.25 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stifel Financial Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st will be paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Stifel Financial’s dividend payout ratio is 26.46%.

Institutional Trading of Stifel Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of SF. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Stifel Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $29,000. Activest Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Stifel Financial by 12,000.0% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 242 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 240 shares during the last quarter. Pinnacle Holdings LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Stifel Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $32,000. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Stifel Financial in the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd raised its stake in shares of Stifel Financial by 49.8% in the first quarter. JTC Employer Solutions Trustee Ltd now owns 481 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. 82.01% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Stifel Financial

Stifel Financial Corp. is a diversified financial services holding company headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1890, the firm has grown into a full‐service brokerage and investment banking organization serving individual investors, corporations and institutions. Through its principal subsidiary, Stifel, Nicolaus & Company, Incorporated, the company delivers a broad array of financial products and services backed by research‐driven insights.

The firm’s main business activities are organized into two core segments: Private Client Group and Institutional Group.