Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Shares Acquired by State of Alaska Department of Revenue

State of Alaska Department of Revenue lifted its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 2.6% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 18,859 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 470 shares during the quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $1,160,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Rothschild Investment LLC purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its stake in 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 worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares in the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc increased its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 1,993.8% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 638 shares during the period. Eastern Bank purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $48,000. 60.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE JEF opened at $63.83 on Tuesday. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $61.79 and its 200-day simple moving average is $53.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.12 billion, a PE ratio of 27.28 and a beta of 1.31. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.16 and a fifty-two week high of $67.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last issued 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 company had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 42.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.19%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 59.83%.

Insider Activity

In related news, Director Robert D. Beyer sold 46,200 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The stock was sold at an average price of $64.07, for a total transaction of $2,960,034.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 100,375 shares in the company, valued at $6,431,026.25. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other news, President Brian P. Friedman sold 200,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total value of $12,618,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 604,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $38,144,592.54. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert D. Beyer sold 46,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.07, for a total value of $2,960,034.00. Following the sale, the director now directly owns 100,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,431,026.25. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last three months, insiders sold 493,526 shares of company stock valued at $31,703,689. Insiders own 20.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on JEF shares. 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 report on Monday, September 23rd. Oppenheimer boosted their price target 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. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price objective on the 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.