Dimensional Fund Advisors LP Lowers Holdings in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. $JEF

Key Points

• Dimensional Fund Advisors LP reduced its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 16.7%, now owning approximately 2.61 million shares valued at $139.98 million.
• Several hedge funds have increased their positions, with JPMorgan Chase & Co. raising its stake by 30.1% and Bank of America increasing its holdings by 135.1%.
• Analysts have mixed views on Jefferies Financial Group, with a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and target prices ranging from $54.00 to $66.00.

Dimensional Fund Advisors LP trimmed its position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 16.7% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,613,516 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 523,941 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP owned 1.27% of Jefferies Financial Group worth $139,977,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JCIC Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 193.8% in the first quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 705 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 123.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,151 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $62,000 after purchasing an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 87.9% during the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,387 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $74,000 after purchasing an additional 649 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 105.5% during the first quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,525 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $82,000 after purchasing an additional 783 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd bought a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at $141,000. 60.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on JEF shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Finally, Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $66.00.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE JEF traded down $0.4250 during trading on Monday, hitting $62.1150. The company had a trading volume of 365,395 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,796,047. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $56.88 and a 200 day simple moving average of $54.99. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.28 and a 12 month high of $82.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $12.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.43 and a beta of 1.48.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 7.70% and a return on equity of 6.59%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.64 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Jefferies Financial Group's payout ratio is 60.38%.

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.