L & S Advisors Inc Acquires New Position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

L & S Advisors Inc purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor purchased 42,181 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,596,000.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in JEF. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 75.7% during the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 1,993.8% in the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 638 shares during the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the third quarter valued at approximately $42,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $48,000. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Insider Transactions at Jefferies Financial Group

In other Jefferies Financial Group news, President Brian P. Friedman sold 247,326 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.20, for a total transaction of $16,125,655.20. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 1,632,277 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $106,424,460.40. The trade was a 13.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo purchased 9,247,081 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $59.67 per share, with a total value of $551,773,323.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 9,247,081 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $551,773,323.27. This trade represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 1,286,923 shares of company stock valued at $88,999,151. Corporate insiders own 20.40% of the company’s stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Up 0.1 %

NYSE JEF opened at $75.01 on Thursday. The business’s 50-day moving average is $65.47 and its 200 day moving average is $56.39. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.41 billion, a PE ratio of 32.03 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $34.34 and a 1 year high of $75.81.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.78 by ($0.03). Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 9.27% and a return on equity of 6.40%. The business had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.32 earnings per share. Jefferies Financial Group’s quarterly revenue was up 42.4% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.87%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Jefferies Financial Group’s payout ratio is 59.83%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

JEF has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley upped their price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. UBS Group assumed coverage on Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $73.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th.

About Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group Inc operates as an investment banking and capital markets firm in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and the Asia-Pacific. The company operates in two segments, Investment Banking and Capital Markets, and Asset Management. It provides investment banking, advisory services with respect to mergers or acquisitions, debt financing, restructurings or recapitalizations, and private capital advisory transactions; underwriting and placement services related to corporate debt, municipal bonds, mortgage-backed and asset-backed securities, equity and equity-linked securities, and loan syndication services; and corporate lending services.