Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR) Shares Bought by Alliancebernstein L.P.

Alliancebernstein L.P. lifted its stake in shares of Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR) by 2.3% during the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 360,224 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 8,066 shares during the period. Alliancebernstein L.P.’s holdings in Piper Sandler Companies were worth $108,049,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in Piper Sandler Companies by 2,183.3% in the fourth quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 137 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,000 after buying an additional 131 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP grew its position in shares of Piper Sandler Companies by 238.8% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 227 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $70,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Piper Sandler Companies by 27.6% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 277 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $83,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Piper Sandler Companies by 336.1% in the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 314 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $94,000 after purchasing an additional 242 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Principal Securities Inc. boosted its stake in Piper Sandler Companies by 280.9% during the 4th quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 339 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $102,000 after purchasing an additional 250 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 72.79% of the company’s stock.

Piper Sandler Companies Trading Up 3.0 %

PIPR stock opened at $259.03 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $259.45 and its two-hundred day moving average is $287.41. The company has a market capitalization of $4.59 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.35 and a beta of 1.38. Piper Sandler Companies has a 52 week low of $183.58 and a 52 week high of $351.80.

Piper Sandler Companies (NYSE:PIPR) last released its earnings results on Friday, January 31st. The financial services provider reported $4.80 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $3.99 by $0.81. Piper Sandler Companies had a return on equity of 17.00% and a net margin of 11.87%. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $4.03 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts predict that Piper Sandler Companies will post 14.14 earnings per share for the current year.

Piper Sandler Companies Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 14th. Investors of record on Tuesday, March 4th were issued a dividend of $0.65 per share. This represents a $2.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, March 4th. Piper Sandler Companies’s payout ratio is currently 25.44%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have commented on PIPR shares. StockNews.com lowered shares of Piper Sandler Companies from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on Piper Sandler Companies from $321.00 to $286.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, March 14th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of Piper Sandler Companies in a research report on Monday, February 3rd.

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.