Credit Agricole S A Lowers Stock Position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. $JEF

Key Points

• Credit Agricole S A decreased its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 47.0%, owning 14,997 shares valued at $803,000 after selling 13,274 shares.
• In Q1, other institutional investors also adjusted their positions significantly, with Elequin Capital LP and JCIC Asset Management Inc. increasing their stakes by 117.9% and 193.8%, respectively.
• Jefferies Financial Group reported $0.40 EPS for the recent quarter, missing estimates by $0.04, and experienced a 1.3% decline in revenue year-over-year.

Credit Agricole S A cut its stake in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 47.0% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 14,997 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 13,274 shares during the period. Credit Agricole S A's holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $803,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in JEF. Elequin Capital LP increased its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 117.9% in the 1st quarter. Elequin Capital LP now owns 549 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of 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 valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 123.9% in the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,151 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc increased its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 87.9% in the first quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,387 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $74,000 after buying an additional 649 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the first quarter valued at $78,000. 60.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Trading Up 1.2%

JEF stock traded up $0.75 during midday trading on Thursday, hitting $65.51. The stock had a trading volume of 1,270,669 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,470,613. The firm has a market cap of $13.51 billion, a PE ratio of 24.72 and a beta of 1.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick 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 company's 50-day moving average price is $57.75 and its 200 day moving average price is $54.98.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.44 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $1.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.64 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 7.70% and a return on equity of 6.59%. Jefferies Financial Group's revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. On average, equities research analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders 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 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.4%. Jefferies Financial Group's payout ratio is 60.38%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have weighed in on JEF shares. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Zacks Research cut shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong sell" rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective 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. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, two have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $66.00.

About Jefferies Financial Group

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.