Jefferies Financial Group Inc. $JEF Stock Bought by Vest Financial LLC

Vest Financial LLC raised its stake in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 108.9% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 74,402 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 38,778 shares during the period. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $3,402,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the company. BlackRock Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the second quarter worth approximately $834,947,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth $127,242,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 2.2% during the 1st quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,666,097 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $110,015,000 after buying an additional 58,585 shares during the last quarter. Bamco Inc. NY purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth $107,044,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP acquired a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth $79,537,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of JEF traded down $0.85 during trading hours on Friday, reaching $44.79. The company had a trading volume of 2,263,471 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,540,600. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $48.96 and a 200-day simple moving average of $51.65. The company has a current ratio of 1.02, a quick ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09. The company has a market capitalization of $8.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 1.57. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $35.53 and a 12-month high of $66.60.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 43.84%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently weighed in on JEF. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $76.00 to $71.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, October 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $67.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $50.00 to $49.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets cut their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $57.00 to $50.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, Jefferies Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $56.86.

About Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group Inc (NYSE:JEF) is a diversified financial services company that operates primarily through its investment banking and capital markets subsidiary, Jefferies LLC. The company provides advisory services for mergers and acquisitions, restructuring and other corporate transactions, along with equity and debt underwriting, securities sales and trading, research, and prime brokerage services.

Jefferies also manages and invests capital through asset management and merchant banking activities.