Macquarie Group Ltd (ASX: MQG) shares are climbing higher again in Wednesday morning trade.
At the time of writing, the investment bank's shares are up around 0.5% and changing hands at an all-time high of $264.27 a piece.
Today's increase means the shares have risen over 6% in the past week and are 30% higher year to date. Compared to this time last year, Macquarie shares are now up 23%.
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Why is everyone buying Macquarie Group shares this week?
There isn't any price-sensitive news out of the ASX bank stock to explain the latest increase. Instead, it looks like a mixture of recent tailwinds and improving market sentiment.
Through most of the year so far, the investment bank has performed strongly, rallying strongly in April and sitting close to today's all-time high.
In late July, the company had its AGM, posted its first-quarter FY27 update, and announced that CEO Shemara Wikramanayake will retire in November, with Greg Ward to take over the top job.
Macquarie described trading conditions during the first quarter as "satisfactory". Its Banking and Financial Services segment increased its profit contribution compared with the same period last year. Deposits rose by 4% during the quarter, while home loans grew by 6% and business banking loans increased by 3%.
The news came on the back of the company's positive earnings results back in May. At the time, Macquarie reported a full-year FY26 net profit of $4.85 billion, up 30% from FY25, and growth across all four of its operating divisions.
The rally of good news has clearly been well-received by the market. Analysts have begun revising their outlook on the shares, and investors have started snapping up the stock ahead of an expected surge.
What do the experts tip for Macquarie's shares over the next 12 months?
Analysts are pretty optimistic about the outlook for Macquarie over the next year. But now the shares have reached a fresh all-time high, it's unclear exactly how much higher they could go.
Market Index data shows that the majority of brokers have a buy rating on the shares. The $268.89 average target price implies a potential 2% upside at the time of writing.
TradingView data shows the majority (nine out of 15) also have a buy/strong buy rating on the shares. But the average $262.80 target price now implies a potential 1% downside ahead.
However, the range between the highest and lowest is huge. Some expect the shares to climb another 10% to $290.40, while others think they could drop 17% to $220.75 at the time of writing.
The team at Catapult Wealth have a buy rating on the investment bank. The wealth management company thinks Macquarie shares are a good alternative to the big four banks in the current environment.
Jarden has a buy rating on Macquarie shares, but thinks the stock is now fully priced. It has a price target of $250, below the current share price.
Morgans also thinks the shares are fully valued. The broker has a hold rating and a $255 target price. It said that Macquarie is a quality franchise and a proven performer, but is overvalued.
