Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. Has $7.97 Million Stake in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 13.6% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 148,720 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 23,431 shares during the quarter. Beacon Investment Advisory Services Inc. owned about 0.07% of Jefferies Financial Group worth $7,967,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JCIC Asset Management Inc. increased its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 193.8% in the 1st quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 705 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $38,000 after purchasing an additional 465 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 123.9% during the 1st 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 during the period. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 87.9% in the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,387 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $74,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares during the period. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB increased its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 105.5% in the 1st quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB now owns 1,525 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $82,000 after buying an additional 783 shares during the period. Finally, Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $141,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have issued reports on JEF shares. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a research report on Tuesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley dropped their price target on 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. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $66.00.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Up 1.2%

Jefferies Financial Group stock traded up $0.66 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $56.83. The company's stock had a trading volume of 40,330 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,687,477. The stock's 50-day simple moving average is $53.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $58.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $11.72 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.44 and a beta of 1.46. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $39.28 and a 52-week high of $82.68.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results 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% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.64 EPS. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 EPS for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.82%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. Jefferies Financial Group's payout ratio is 60.38%.

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.