Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR) Cut to Hold at Wall Street Zen

Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR) was downgraded by equities research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued to investors on Saturday.

Several other equities analysts have also commented on the company. JMP Securities restated a “market perform” rating on shares of Piper Sandler Companies in a research note on Monday, May 5th. Wolfe Research raised Piper Sandler Companies from a “peer perform” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $339.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $312.50.

Piper Sandler Companies Stock Performance

Shares of Piper Sandler Companies stock opened at $333.48 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $5.90 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.14 and a beta of 1.50. Piper Sandler Companies has a 12 month low of $202.91 and a 12 month high of $351.80. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $310.97.

Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $2.95 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.99 by $0.96. The firm had revenue of $405.39 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $349.40 million. Piper Sandler Companies had a return on equity of 18.67% and a net margin of 13.18%.The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 13.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.52 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts forecast that Piper Sandler Companies will post 14.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, General Counsel John W. Geelan sold 2,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, August 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $322.69, for a total transaction of $645,380.00. Following the sale, the general counsel owned 12,645 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $4,080,415.05. This trade represents a 13.66% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. Also, Director Scott C. Taylor sold 2,600 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $319.86, for a total value of $831,636.00. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 16,319 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,219,795.34. This represents a 13.74% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 26,136 shares of company stock worth $8,380,342 in the last three months. 2.70% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Piper Sandler Companies

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB boosted its holdings in Piper Sandler Companies by 131.9% in the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 109 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. von Borstel & Associates Inc. acquired a new stake in Piper Sandler Companies in the first quarter worth about $27,000. CENTRAL TRUST Co acquired a new stake in Piper Sandler Companies in the second quarter worth about $28,000. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Piper Sandler Companies by 495.2% in the first quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 125 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 104 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Piper Sandler Companies in the second quarter worth about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 72.79% of the company’s stock.

About Piper Sandler Companies

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.