Insight Wealth Strategies LLC Takes Position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Insight Wealth Strategies LLC purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 55,943 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $4,386,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth $286,476,000. Lisanti Capital Growth LLC purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the third quarter worth about $1,718,000. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 45.5% in the third quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 89,605 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,515,000 after purchasing an additional 28,011 shares during the period. Covenant Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $3,337,000. Finally, Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. increased its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. now owns 299,297 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $18,422,000 after purchasing an additional 7,889 shares during the period. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Jefferies Financial Group

In other news, President Brian P. Friedman sold 393,397 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.17, for a total value of $28,391,461.49. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 560,507 shares in the company, valued at $40,451,790.19. This represents a 41.24 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 400,000 shares of Jefferies Financial Group stock in a transaction dated 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 approximately $1,081,825,270.88. This represents a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,286,923 shares of company stock valued at $88,999,151 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 20.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently commented on JEF shares. Oppenheimer reduced their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $82.00 to $81.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Friday. 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 note on Monday, December 9th. Finally, UBS Group began coverage on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of JEF stock traded up $0.37 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $81.37. The stock had a trading volume of 1,479,368 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,512,561. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $75.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $63.88. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $38.77 and a 12-month high of $82.68. The company has a market cap of $16.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.77 and a beta of 1.35.

About Jefferies Financial Group

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.