Twin Tree Management LP Invests $3.12 Million in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 39,776 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,118,000.

Other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 925.4% in the fourth quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 2,584 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $203,000 after acquiring an additional 2,332 shares during the last quarter. Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. acquired a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the third quarter worth approximately $286,476,000. Friedenthal Financial acquired a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $772,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 7.2% in the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 2,504,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $154,153,000 after acquiring an additional 167,270 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Plato Investment Management Ltd acquired a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $788,000. 60.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have weighed in on JEF. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $75.00 price objective on Jefferies Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $92.00 to $81.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $82.00 to $81.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 3rd.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

JEF stock opened at $58.44 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. The company has a market capitalization of $12.05 billion, a PE ratio of 19.61 and a beta of 1.37. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $40.72 and a 12-month high of $82.68. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $69.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $69.49.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.06). Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.92% and a net margin of 10.57%. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.83 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.30 EPS. Jefferies Financial Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 63.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 EPS for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 14th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This is an increase from Jefferies Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. The ex-dividend date was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.74%. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 53.69%.

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.