First Trust Advisors LP Purchases 56,895 Shares of Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF)

First Trust Advisors LP increased its position in Stifel Financial Corp. (NYSE:SF – Get Rating) by 17.1% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 389,891 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 56,895 shares during the quarter. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.37% of Stifel Financial worth $22,758,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the company. Advanced Research Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in Stifel Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $57,000. Quantbot Technologies LP acquired a new position in Stifel Financial in the 3rd quarter valued at about $73,000. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. grew its stake in Stifel Financial by 88.0% in the 4th quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 2,122 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $110,000 after buying an additional 993 shares during the last quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. grew its stake in Stifel Financial by 72.5% in the 3rd quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 2,230 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $115,000 after buying an additional 937 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC acquired a new position in Stifel Financial in the 4th quarter valued at about $149,000. 83.02% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages recently commented on SF. StockNews.com began coverage on shares of Stifel Financial in a research note on Thursday. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. JMP Securities decreased their target price on shares of Stifel Financial from $95.00 to $91.00 and set a “market outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 10th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Stifel Financial from $72.00 to $65.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 11th.

Stifel Financial Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:SF opened at $58.66 on Friday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $58.28 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $61.50. Stifel Financial Corp. has a 12-month low of $49.31 and a 12-month high of $68.77. The firm has a market cap of $6.23 billion, a PE ratio of 11.26 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a quick ratio of 0.80, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.35.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF – Get Rating) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 26th. The financial services provider reported $1.40 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.45 by ($0.05). Stifel Financial had a return on equity of 15.28% and a net margin of 14.24%. The firm had revenue of $1.11 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.12 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.49 EPS. The business’s revenue was down .9% on a year-over-year basis.

Stifel Financial Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, June 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.36 per share. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.45%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, May 31st. Stifel Financial’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 27.64%.

Insider Transactions at Stifel Financial

In other news, insider James M. Zemlyak purchased 20,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 24th. The stock was bought at an average price of $56.05 per share, with a total value of $1,121,000.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 1,250,652 shares in the company, valued at approximately $70,099,044.60. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. In related news, SVP Thomas B. Michaud sold 24,036 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.85, for a total value of $1,414,518.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the senior vice president now owns 100,240 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,899,124. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider James M. Zemlyak acquired 20,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 24th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $56.05 per share, with a total value of $1,121,000.00. Following the purchase, the insider now owns 1,250,652 shares in the company, valued at $70,099,044.60. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders bought 32,500 shares of company stock valued at $1,848,500. Company insiders own 3.30% of the company’s stock.

About Stifel Financial

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Stifel Financial Corp. provides securities brokerage, investment banking, trading, investment advisory, and related financial services. It operates through the following segments: Global Wealth Management, Institutional Group, and Other. The Global Wealth Management segment provides securities transaction, brokerage, and investment services to clients.