Piper Jaffray Upped to Strong Buy - Analyst Blog

On May 3, Zacks Investment Research upgraded Piper Jaffray Companies PJC to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy).

Why the Upgrade?

The uptick in the rank of this Minnesota-based investment brokerage firm was driven by strong estimate revisions on the back of impressive first-quarter 2014 results. Notably, with this, the company has delivered positive earnings surprises in 3 of the trailing 4 quarters with an average beat of 41.2%.

On Apr 24, Piper Jaffray released its first-quarter 2014 results. Adjusted net income from continuing operations came in at $1.24, outpacing the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 36.3%. Results benefited from top-line growth, partially offset by higher operating expenses.

Adjusted net income increased 68.7% to $20.0 million, while adjusted net revenues stood at $161.5 million, up 51.3% year over year. However, total non-interest expenses increased 48.2% year over year.

Piper Jaffray operates in two segments – Capital Markets and Asset Management. Notably, both the segment reflected year-over-year growth in net revenues. Driven by net inflows and market appreciation, assets under management nudged up 12.7% year over year to $11.5 billion.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2014 advanced 25.7% to $3.59 per share over the past 30 days. Also, for 2015, it moved north 13.0% to $3.64 per share.

Other Stocks to Consider

Other stocks in this space worth considering include E*TRADE Financial Corp. ETFC, Interactive Brokers Group, Inc. IBKR and Investment Technology Group Inc. ITG. All three stocks hold the same rank as Piper Jaffray.