Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) Hits New 52-Week High – What’s Next?

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $80.53 and last traded at $80.12, with a volume of 27823 shares. The stock had previously closed at $79.45.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on JEF. Morgan Stanley upped 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. Oppenheimer increased their price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $73.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price objective on the stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.95 and a beta of 1.31. The business has a fifty day moving average of $66.65 and a two-hundred day moving average of $57.15.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by ($0.03). The company had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.40% and a net margin of 9.27%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 42.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.32 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.76%. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.83%.

Insider Transactions at Jefferies Financial Group

In other news, Director Robert D. Beyer sold 46,200 shares of Jefferies Financial Group 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 completion of the sale, the director now owns 100,375 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,431,026.25. This trade represents a 31.52 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 400,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.26, for a total transaction of $28,904,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 14,971,288 shares in the company, valued at $1,081,825,270.88. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,286,923 shares of company stock worth $88,999,151 over the last quarter. Company insiders own 20.40% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in JEF. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $25,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 75.7% in the second 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 during the period. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB acquired a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Versant Capital Management Inc grew its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 1,993.8% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 638 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.