Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Shares Acquired by Custom Index Systems LLC

Custom Index Systems LLC increased its position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 2.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 17,175 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the quarter. Custom Index Systems LLC’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $1,347,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $32,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 158.3% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at $42,000. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 68.1% during the 3rd quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 1,071 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $66,000 after acquiring an additional 434 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quarry LP bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $70,000. 60.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Jefferies Financial Group news, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 400,000 shares of the business’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 directly owns 14,971,288 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,081,825,270.88. The trade was a 2.60 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, President Brian P. Friedman sold 393,397 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.17, for a total transaction of $28,391,461.49. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 560,507 shares in the company, valued at $40,451,790.19. The trade was a 41.24 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 20.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on JEF shares. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Jefferies Financial Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their price target for the stock from $67.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Oppenheimer reduced their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $82.00 to $81.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 3rd.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Down 0.3 %

Shares of NYSE:JEF opened at $76.92 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average is $77.72 and its two-hundred day moving average is $67.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $39.58 and a 1-year high of $82.68. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.81 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.81 and a beta of 1.35.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.06). Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.97% and a net margin of 10.57%. The business had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.83 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.30 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 63.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts anticipate that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.55 EPS for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.08%. This is a positive change from Jefferies Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Jefferies Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 46.98%.

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.