Lecap Asset Management Ltd. Makes New Investment in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. $JEF

Key Points

• Lecap Asset Management Ltd. has invested approximately $1,344,000 in Jefferies Financial Group Inc., purchasing 24,584 shares during the second quarter.
• Jefferies Financial Group's stock price target has been increased to $74.00 by Morgan Stanley, while the stock holds a consensus average rating of "Hold" among analysts.
• The company has declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40, representing an annual yield of 2.5%, payable on November 26th to investors of record as of November 17th.

Lecap Asset Management Ltd. purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 24,584 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,344,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the company. Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 38.6% during the 1st quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 29,542 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,583,000 after buying an additional 8,229 shares during the last quarter. Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $2,467,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 18.5% during the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,922 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $264,000 after buying an additional 768 shares during the last quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $262,000. Finally, GF Fund Management CO. LTD. acquired a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at $462,000. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages recently issued reports on JEF. Morgan Stanley increased their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $72.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Tuesday. Telsey Advisory Group set a $74.00 price target on Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday. Zacks Research upgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, September 4th. Finally, Wall Street Zen upgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Saturday, September 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $72.75.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Down 3.1%

Shares of Jefferies Financial Group stock opened at $63.42 on Thursday. The business has a 50-day moving average of $62.81 and a 200-day moving average of $55.37. 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 company has a market capitalization of $13.08 billion, a PE ratio of 21.79 and a beta of 1.51. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $39.28 and a 1-year high of $82.68.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, September 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.75 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.29% and a net margin of 7.40%.The company's revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.75 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. Jefferies Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 54.98%.

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.

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