Wedge Capital Management L L P NC Boosts Stake in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Wedge Capital Management L L P NC boosted its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 47.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 41,173 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 13,195 shares during the quarter. Wedge Capital Management L L P NC's holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $2,206,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Hemington Wealth Management lifted its holdings 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 purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Principal Securities Inc. lifted its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 161.4% during the 4th 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 in the last quarter. Private Trust Co. NA boosted its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 346.6% during the 4th quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 652 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $51,000 after acquiring an additional 506 shares during the last quarter. Finally, IFP Advisors Inc grew its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 758.1% in the 4th quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 738 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 652 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.88% of the company's stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Jefferies Financial Group stock traded down $0.72 during trading on Tuesday, hitting $52.70. The stock had a trading volume of 2,451,695 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,665,339. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.28 and a 1 year high of $82.68. The company has a quick ratio of 1.07, a current ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. The stock's 50 day moving average is $47.66 and its two-hundred day moving average is $62.90. The stock has a market cap of $10.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.69 and a beta of 1.45.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last posted 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 company had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.87 EPS. The company's revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 EPS for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.04%. Jefferies Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on JEF. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen lowered Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Oppenheimer lowered Jefferies Financial Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut Jefferies Financial Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and cut their price objective for the stock from $75.00 to $41.00 in a research report on Monday, April 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $62.75.

Jefferies Financial Group Company 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.