Stock in Raymond James Financial jumped nearly 5 percent Thursday after the St. Petersburg-based brokerage and financial services firm reported closing its fiscal year with record profits and revenues.
Raymond James reported net revenues of $1.46 billion for its fiscal fourth quarter ended Sept. 30, up 9 percent from a year ago and up 7 percent from the latest quarter. Net income for the period rose to $171.7 million, or $1.19 per share, a 33 percent surge from a year earlier.
For the fiscal year, revenues also hit a record, rising 4 percent to $5.4 billion. Net income of $529.4 million, or $3.65 per diluted share, was up 5 percent from 2015.
CEO Paul Reilly said he wouldn't have projected record numbers given how the year started in a climate of plunging oil prices and underwriting markets freezing up.
"We achieved this remarkably in a very unremarkable fashion," he said Thursday morning in a conference call with analysts. "When you look at this year, there's nothing in particular that stood out except all (four of) our divisions had record revenue."
Elsewhere: The capital market unit saw quarterly revenues rise 10 percent to $284.7 million; the asset management segment was up 7 percent in revenues to $106.4 million; and Raymond James Bank enjoyed a 25 percent jump in revenues to $133.7 million.
CFO Jeff Julien said the $1.28-per-share net income for the quarter, after taking out one-time acquisition expenses, "exceeded everybody's expectations, including our own."
Raymond James continued to make its mark as a major non-Wall Street-based brokerage firm, adding 265 financial advisers through acquisitions and 285 more advisers organically.
Shares in Raymond James closed Thursday at $61.96 apiece, up $2.83.