Bank of Nova Scotia Grows Position in Stifel Financial Corporation $SF

Bank of Nova Scotia lifted its position in shares of Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE:SF) by 366.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 341,855 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 268,556 shares during the quarter. Bank of Nova Scotia owned about 0.22% of Stifel Financial worth $25,270,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in SF. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in shares of Stifel Financial in the 3rd quarter worth about $29,000. Activest Wealth Management boosted its stake in Stifel Financial by 12,000.0% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 242 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 240 shares in the last quarter. Caitong International Asset Management Co. Ltd bought a new stake in Stifel Financial during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Cullen Frost Bankers Inc. purchased a new stake in Stifel Financial in the fourth quarter worth about $50,000. Finally, BOKF NA grew its holdings in Stifel Financial by 1,626.9% in the third quarter. BOKF NA now owns 449 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 423 shares during the period. 82.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Stifel Financial Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of Stifel Financial stock opened at $80.70 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $73.36 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $76.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.38 billion, a PE ratio of 14.44 and a beta of 1.01. Stifel Financial Corporation has a 52-week low of $67.81 and a 52-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.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 22nd. The financial services provider reported $1.42 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.33 by $0.09. Stifel Financial had a net margin of 16.11% and a return on equity of 19.32%. The company had revenue of $1.45 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.42 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.71 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 13.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Stifel Financial Corporation will post 6.29 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Stifel Financial Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 15th. Stockholders of record on Monday, June 1st were paid a $0.34 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, June 1st. This represents a $1.36 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.7%. Stifel Financial’s payout ratio is currently 24.33%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Stifel Financial from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, May 20th. UBS Group set a $90.00 price target on Stifel Financial in a research note on Thursday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b-)” rating on shares of Stifel Financial in a research report on Friday, May 29th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on Stifel Financial from $80.00 to $86.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a report on Thursday. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $91.67.

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.