Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Stock Now Rated "Hold" by Sell-Side Brokerages

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group has a consensus “Hold” rating from seven analysts: five holds and two buys. The average 12-month price target is $56.86, above the stock’s reported $45.05 opening price.
• Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company, with several funds increasing their holdings, including GAMMA Investing, Gradient Investments, and NewEdge Advisors.
• Jefferies announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, or $1.60 annually for a 3.6% yield, and authorized a $250 million share-repurchase program covering up to 2% of outstanding shares.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) has been given a consensus recommendation of "Hold" by the seven analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating on the company. The average twelve-month price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $56.86.

A number of analysts have weighed in on the company. UBS Group lowered their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $65.00 to $61.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Friday, September 11th. Wall Street Zen raised Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Sunday. Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $50.00 to $49.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Oppenheimer decreased their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $76.00 to $71.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Finally, Weiss Ratings downgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold (c)" rating to a "hold (c-)" rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th.

Institutional Trading of Jefferies Financial Group

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 86.2% during the third quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,709 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $78,000 after purchasing an additional 791 shares during the period. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 4.4% in the third quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 8,671 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $397,000 after buying an additional 367 shares during the last quarter. Gradient Investments LLC increased its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 13.8% in the 3rd quarter. Gradient Investments LLC now owns 351,573 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $16,077,000 after buying an additional 42,679 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 5.9% in the 2nd quarter. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC now owns 182,934 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $9,143,000 after buying an additional 10,264 shares during the period. Finally, NewEdge Advisors LLC increased its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 77.3% in the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 68,577 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $3,427,000 after buying an additional 29,899 shares during the period. 60.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of JEF stock opened at $45.05 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $8.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.34 and a beta of 1.57. The company's 50 day moving average is $50.93 and its 200 day moving average is $51.47. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.98 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99. Jefferies Financial Group has a 52-week low of $35.53 and a 52-week high of $66.60.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. Jefferies Financial Group's payout ratio is currently 43.84%.

Jefferies Financial Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, June 24th that permits the company to repurchase $250.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the financial services provider to repurchase up to 2% of its shares through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Jefferies Financial Group Company Profile

Jefferies Financial Group Inc is a diversified financial services company that provides investment banking, capital markets, asset management and other financial services to corporations, institutional investors, governments and individual clients. Its principal operating business is Jefferies Group, an investment banking and securities firm.

Jefferies provides advisory services for mergers and acquisitions, restructurings and other strategic transactions, along with equity and debt underwriting, sales and trading, research, prime brokerage and securities services.

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