Swiss National Bank Sells 12,800 Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Swiss National Bank trimmed its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 3.8% in the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 320,900 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 12,800 shares during the quarter. Swiss National Bank owned approximately 0.16% of Jefferies Financial Group worth $19,751,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 75.7% during the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in 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 buying an additional 638 shares during the period. Eastern Bank bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the third quarter valued at $42,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth about $48,000. 60.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling at Jefferies Financial Group

In related news, President Brian P. Friedman sold 393,397 shares of Jefferies Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.17, for a total transaction of $28,391,461.49. Following the transaction, the president now owns 560,507 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $40,451,790.19. The trade was a 41.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. Also, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 400,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.26, for a total value of $28,904,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 14,971,288 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,081,825,270.88. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders sold 1,286,923 shares of company stock worth $88,999,151. Insiders own 20.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently commented on JEF shares. UBS Group initiated coverage on Jefferies Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price for the company. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, Oppenheimer increased their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $73.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:JEF opened at $76.77 on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $34.34 and a twelve month high of $77.53. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $65.86 and its 200-day moving average is $56.53. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.81 and a beta of 1.31.

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 for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.78 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.40% and a net margin of 9.27%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 42.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be given a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.82%. Jefferies Financial Group’s payout ratio is 59.83%.

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.