Brokerages Set Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE:SF) Target Price at $135.18

Shares of Stifel Financial Corporation (NYSE:SF) have been assigned an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the twelve research firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month target price among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $135.1818.

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on SF shares. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Stifel Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Wolfe Research reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $149.00 price objective on shares of Stifel Financial in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Stifel Financial in a research note on Thursday. Citigroup restated an “outperform” rating on shares of Stifel Financial in a research note on Monday, January 12th. Finally, Zacks Research cut shares of Stifel Financial from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, November 24th.

Trending Headlines about Stifel Financial

Here are the key news stories impacting Stifel Financial this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Stifel reported stronger-than-expected Q4 results and record full-year performance: non?GAAP EPS $2.63 (beat), revenue $1.56B (beat) and full-year net revenues at record levels — results support earnings momentum and valuation support. GlobeNewswire: Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Management raised FY?2026 revenue guidance to roughly $6.0B–$6.4B versus consensus near $5.8B, signaling confidence in top?line growth and providing forward visibility for investors. Guidance in Press Release
• Positive Sentiment: Board announced an 11% increase to the common dividend (quarterly $0.51) and a 3-for-2 stock split, both shareholder-friendly moves that can improve liquidity and make the shares more accessible. Dividend & Split Announcement
• Positive Sentiment: Wealth management and advisory businesses are cited as the main drivers of outperformance in recent coverage — stronger recurring fee streams reduce cyclicality and underpin longer?term revenue growth. Yahoo Finance: Deep Dive
• Positive Sentiment: Short interest fell ~21.7% in January (now ~2.0% of shares), reducing one near?term bearish pressure and potentially lowering the risk of a short?squeeze?driven reversal. MarketBeat: Short Interest & Stock Info
• Neutral Sentiment: Full Q4 earnings call transcript and slide deck are available for investors who want line?by?line details on segment performance, expenses and capital allocation plans. MSN: Earnings Call Transcript
• Negative Sentiment: Despite the fundamental positives, shares are under near?term pressure (trading below the 50?day moving average) and carry a P/E near ~22 — investors could be trimming positions into the post?earnings move or taking profits ahead of the Feb. 27 split. No link

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Stifel Financial

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in SF. Advisory Services Network LLC bought a new position in Stifel Financial during the 3rd quarter worth $29,000. Pinnacle Holdings LLC acquired a new position in shares of Stifel Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. increased its position in Stifel Financial by 2,383.3% in the 3rd quarter. SJS Investment Consulting Inc. now owns 298 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $34,000 after buying an additional 286 shares in the last quarter. HM Payson & Co. bought a new stake in Stifel Financial during the 3rd quarter valued at $37,000. Finally, Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Stifel Financial in the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. 82.01% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Stifel Financial Stock Down 1.4%

Shares of NYSE SF opened at $124.49 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $12.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.17 and a beta of 1.13. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $126.94 and its 200 day moving average is $118.55. Stifel Financial has a 52 week low of $73.27 and a 52 week high of $134.74. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.28, a quick ratio of 0.79 and a current ratio of 0.84.

Stifel Financial shares are going to split before the market opens on Friday, February 27th. The 3-2 split was announced on Tuesday, January 27th. The newly created shares will be issued to shareholders after the closing bell on Thursday, February 26th.

Stifel Financial (NYSE:SF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 28th. The financial services provider reported $2.63 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.48 by $0.15. Stifel Financial had a net margin of 12.37% and a return on equity of 15.80%. The business had revenue of $1.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.50 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.23 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Stifel Financial will post 8.26 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Stifel Financial Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 16th. Shareholders of record on Monday, March 2nd will be issued a $0.51 dividend. This represents a $2.04 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, March 2nd. This is a boost from Stifel Financial’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. Stifel Financial’s payout ratio is currently 31.29%.

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.