New York State Common Retirement Fund Reduces Stock Holdings in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

New York State Common Retirement Fund decreased its stake in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 5.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 86,937 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,800 shares during the period. New York State Common Retirement Fund's holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $4,657,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the business. JCIC Asset Management Inc. grew its holdings in 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 valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 465 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 123.9% during the first quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 1,151 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $62,000 after buying an additional 637 shares in the last quarter. MassMutual Private Wealth & Trust FSB lifted its stake in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 783 shares during the last quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC raised its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 824.0% during the 1st quarter. Sierra Ocean LLC now owns 1,848 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $99,000 after purchasing an additional 1,648 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV grew its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 86.6% in the 1st quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 2,282 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $122,000 after buying an additional 1,059 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.88% of the company's stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE JEF traded up $0.54 on Tuesday, hitting $56.27. The stock had a trading volume of 1,093,628 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,691,096. The company's 50-day moving average is $53.09 and its two-hundred day moving average is $58.06. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68. The stock has a market cap of $11.61 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.23 and a beta of 1.46. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a one year low of $39.28 and a one year high of $82.68.

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

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.84%. Jefferies Financial Group's payout ratio is 60.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Jefferies Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $66.00.

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.