AQR Capital Management LLC Sells 1,336 Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

AQR Capital Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 0.7% during the second quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 190,043 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,336 shares during the quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $9,447,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $25,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 75.7% in the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 1,993.8% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 638 shares in the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $48,000. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the second quarter worth $80,000. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have issued reports on JEF. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, September 13th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, September 23rd. StockNews.com cut shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price for the company.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:JEF opened at $62.34 on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $31.38 and a fifty-two week high of $62.98. The company’s 50-day moving average is $58.16 and its 200 day moving average is $50.59. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a current ratio of 0.91. The company has a market capitalization of $12.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.44 and a beta of 1.32.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 7.82% and a return on equity of 5.37%. The firm’s revenue was up 42.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.25%. Jefferies Financial Group’s payout ratio is presently 77.35%.

Insider Activity

In other news, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo purchased 9,247,081 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The stock was bought at an average price of $59.67 per share, for a total transaction of $551,773,323.27. Following the purchase, the director now owns 9,247,081 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $551,773,323.27. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Insiders own 20.40% of the company’s stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Profile

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.