Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR) Shares Gap Up Following Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR) gapped up before the market opened on Friday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The stock had previously closed at $242.81, but opened at $256.61. Piper Sandler Companies shares last traded at $246.01, with a volume of 13,214 shares traded.

The financial services provider reported $4.09 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.85 by $1.24. The company had revenue of $357.27 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $366.99 million. Piper Sandler Companies had a return on equity of 17.00% and a net margin of 11.87%. Piper Sandler Companies’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.79 EPS.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PIPR has been the subject of a number of research reports. JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Piper Sandler Companies in a research note on Monday, February 3rd. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their price objective on Piper Sandler Companies from $321.00 to $286.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, StockNews.com cut Piper Sandler Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Piper Sandler Companies

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its holdings in Piper Sandler Companies by 1.5% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 2,063,590 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $618,974,000 after purchasing an additional 31,400 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in shares of Piper Sandler Companies by 17.2% during the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 697,824 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $209,312,000 after buying an additional 102,426 shares in the last quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. grew its stake in shares of Piper Sandler Companies by 2.3% during the 4th quarter. Alliancebernstein L.P. now owns 360,224 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $108,049,000 after acquiring an additional 8,066 shares during the period. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC increased its holdings in Piper Sandler Companies by 16.8% in the 1st quarter. Stephens Investment Management Group LLC now owns 250,507 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $62,041,000 after acquiring an additional 35,953 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank bought a new stake in Piper Sandler Companies during the 4th quarter worth approximately $68,696,000. 72.79% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Piper Sandler Companies Trading Up 3.8 %

The company has a market capitalization of $4.48 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.66 and a beta of 1.38.

Piper Sandler Companies Company Profile

Piper Sandler Companies operates as an investment bank and institutional securities firm that serves corporations, private equity groups, public entities, non-profit entities, and institutional investors in the United States and internationally. It offers investment banking services and institutional sales, trading, and research services for various equity and fixed income products; advisory services, such as mergers and acquisitions, equity and debt private placements, and debt and restructuring advisory; raises capital through equity and debt financings; underwrites municipal issuances; and municipal financial advisory and loan placement services, as well as various over-the-counter derivative products.