Creative Planning Increases Stake in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Creative Planning increased its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 18.2% in the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 28,273 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 4,349 shares during the quarter. Creative Planning’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $1,740,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of JEF. Ritholtz Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the third quarter valued at about $229,000. UMB Bank n.a. increased its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 5.2% in the 3rd quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 8,080 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $497,000 after acquiring an additional 401 shares during the last quarter. USA Financial Formulas purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $346,000. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC boosted its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 21.5% during the 3rd quarter. Daymark Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,925 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $365,000 after acquiring an additional 1,050 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Artemis Investment Management LLP grew its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 9.1% in the third quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 1,275,919 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $78,533,000 after purchasing an additional 106,076 shares in the last quarter. 60.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Trading Up 1.4 %

JEF opened at $64.90 on Tuesday. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $31.71 and a 52 week high of $67.79. The company has a market capitalization of $13.34 billion, a P/E ratio of 35.86 and a beta of 1.32. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $61.25 and its two-hundred day moving average is $53.21. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 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 firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.32 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 42.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.16%. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.35%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on JEF shares. Oppenheimer upped their price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd.

Insider Transactions at Jefferies Financial Group

In other news, President Brian P. Friedman sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total transaction of $12,618,000.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 604,606 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,144,592.54. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. In other news, President Brian P. Friedman sold 200,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total value 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 approximately $38,144,592.54. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo acquired 9,247,081 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were bought at an average cost of $59.67 per share, for a total transaction of $551,773,323.27. Following the transaction, the director now owns 9,247,081 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $551,773,323.27. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Corporate insiders own 20.40% of the company’s stock.

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.