Raymond James buys back stock

ST. PETERSBURG — The board of directors at Raymond James Financial (symbol: RJF) approved the addition of $21 million to its existing stock buyback efforts, a company statement says.

The new allocation gives Raymond James $75 million to be used toward stock buyback, as well as the retirement of some of its senior debt, the company says.

The announcement pushed the financial firm's stock up more than 2% in early Friday trading, to more than $26 a share. Over the past year, Raymond James' stock has appreciated in value by more than 12%.