Diversified Trust Co Buys New Position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Diversified Trust Co purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 27,088 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $2,124,000.

A number of other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the third quarter worth approximately $286,476,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 1.8% during the 2nd quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,232,280 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $210,591,000 after purchasing an additional 76,327 shares during the period. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC raised its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 12.9% in the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 3,396,255 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $168,998,000 after buying an additional 389,385 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 782.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,286,958 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $202,312,000 after buying an additional 2,914,504 shares during the period. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 7.2% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,504,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $154,153,000 after buying an additional 167,270 shares in the last quarter. 60.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $67.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. UBS Group began coverage on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer cut their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $82.00 to $81.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd.

Insider Activity at Jefferies Financial Group

In related news, Director Robert D. Beyer sold 46,200 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 directly owns 100,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,431,026.25. The trade was a 31.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, President Brian P. Friedman sold 247,326 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $65.20, for a total value of $16,125,655.20. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 1,632,277 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $106,424,460.40. This represents a 13.16 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 1,286,923 shares of company stock worth $88,999,151. 20.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

JEF stock opened at $79.56 on Wednesday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $76.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.36. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.35 billion, a PE ratio of 34.00 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a one year low of $38.77 and a one year high of $82.68.

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.