SG Americas Securities LLC Sells 47,915 Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

SG Americas Securities LLC reduced its stake in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 81.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 10,672 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 47,915 shares during the period. SG Americas Securities LLC’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $657,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of JEF. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 75.7% in the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the period. United Services Automobile Association increased its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 2.0% during the second quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 13,219 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $658,000 after purchasing an additional 264 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 4.6% during the second quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 6,765 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $337,000 after purchasing an additional 295 shares during the period. Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 1.9% during the 2nd quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 16,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $836,000 after purchasing an additional 317 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Retirement Group LLC grew its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 0.3% in the 1st quarter. Retirement Group LLC now owns 133,962 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,908,000 after buying an additional 458 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Up 1.8 %

Shares of NYSE JEF opened at $64.24 on Monday. The company has a market cap of $13.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.45 and a beta of 1.32. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $31.38 and a 12 month high of $64.54. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $59.09 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $51.54.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by ($0.03). Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.46% and a net margin of 9.27%. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. Jefferies Financial Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 42.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.18%. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.83%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com downgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on 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. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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 shares were purchased at an average cost of $59.67 per share, with a total value of $551,773,323.27. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 9,247,081 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $551,773,323.27. The purchase was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this link. In related news, President Brian P. Friedman sold 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total transaction of $12,618,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 604,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,144,592.54. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo purchased 9,247,081 shares of Jefferies Financial Group stock in a transaction on 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 transaction, the director now directly owns 9,247,081 shares in the company, valued at approximately $551,773,323.27. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders own 20.40% of the company’s stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Company 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.