Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Shares Sold by HWG Holdings LP

HWG Holdings LP lowered its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 34.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 35,333 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 18,173 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group accounts for about 0.9% of HWG Holdings LP's portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. HWG Holdings LP's holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $2,770,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Hemington Wealth Management raised its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 71.8% in the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 335 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Principal Securities Inc. raised its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 161.4% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 575 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $45,000 after acquiring an additional 355 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA raised its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 346.6% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 652 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $51,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

JEF has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $75.00 to $41.00 in a research note on Monday, April 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $62.75.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Down 1.7%

Jefferies Financial Group stock traded down $0.85 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $48.56. 1,513,520 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,628,156. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.28 and a 12 month high of $82.68. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $48.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $64.08. The company has a market cap of $10.02 billion, a PE ratio of 16.30 and a beta of 1.47.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, March 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.88 by ($0.28). Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.92% and a net margin of 10.57%. The business had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.87 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 19th. Jefferies Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 55.36%.

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.