PJT Partners (NYSE:PJT) Trading Up 8.2% on Strong Earnings

PJT Partners Inc. (NYSE:PJT) was up 8.2% during mid-day trading on Thursday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $102.35 and last traded at $101.23. Approximately 56,742 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 79% from the average daily volume of 272,606 shares. The stock had previously closed at $93.54.

The financial services provider reported $0.98 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.45 by $0.53. PJT Partners had a net margin of 7.57% and a return on equity of 17.44%. The business had revenue of $329.39 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $229.32 million. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.54 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 64.7% on a year-over-year basis.

PJT Partners Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 20th. Investors of record on Wednesday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $0.25 per share. This represents a $1.00 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.00%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, June 5th. PJT Partners’s dividend payout ratio is currently 27.55%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PJT has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group reaffirmed a “sell” rating and set a $75.00 target price (down previously from $100.00) on shares of PJT Partners in a research report on Tuesday, March 26th. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $99.00 price target (down from $108.00) on shares of PJT Partners in a report on Tuesday, January 9th. Finally, JMP Securities reiterated a “market outperform” rating and set a $110.00 target price on shares of PJT Partners in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $93.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at PJT Partners

In related news, General Counsel David Adam Travin sold 5,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, February 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $93.21, for a total transaction of $466,050.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the general counsel now owns 1,541 shares in the company, valued at $143,636.61. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other news, General Counsel David Adam Travin sold 5,000 shares of PJT Partners stock in a transaction dated Thursday, February 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $93.21, for a total transaction of $466,050.00. Following the transaction, the general counsel now owns 1,541 shares in the company, valued at approximately $143,636.61. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Also, CFO Helen T. Meates sold 12,926 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 29th. The stock was sold at an average price of $105.51, for a total transaction of $1,363,822.26. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief financial officer now directly owns 48,821 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $5,151,103.71. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 27,926 shares of company stock worth $2,875,672. Insiders own 10.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of PJT Partners

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Handelsbanken Fonder AB grew its holdings in shares of PJT Partners by 65.4% in the 4th quarter. Handelsbanken Fonder AB now owns 4,300 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $438,000 after acquiring an additional 1,700 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue bought a new position in PJT Partners in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $1,397,000. Dark Forest Capital Management LP increased its position in shares of PJT Partners by 90.2% during the 3rd quarter. Dark Forest Capital Management LP now owns 24,433 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,941,000 after purchasing an additional 11,589 shares during the last quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group raised its stake in shares of PJT Partners by 22.1% during the 3rd quarter. Schroder Investment Management Group now owns 371,730 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,530,000 after purchasing an additional 67,197 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Chartwell Investment Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PJT Partners in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $8,676,000. 89.23% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PJT Partners Stock Performance

The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $96.57 and a 200 day moving average price of $93.78. The company has a market cap of $2.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.42 and a beta of 0.67.

About PJT Partners

PJT Partners Inc, an investment bank, provides various strategic and capital markets advisory, restructuring and special situations, and shareholder advisory services to corporations, financial sponsors, institutional investors, and governments worldwide. It offers advisory services to clients on various transactions, including mergers and acquisitions (M&A), spin-offs, activism defense, contested M&A, joint ventures, minority investments, and divestitures.