Nuveen LLC Purchases New Holdings in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. $JEF

Key Points

• Nuveen LLC has made a new investment in Jefferies Financial Group by acquiring approximately 1.1 million shares valued at around $58.97 million, representing a ownership interest of 0.53% at the end of the last quarter.
• Analysts have mixed opinions on Jefferies Financial Group, with Goldman Sachs raising their price target to $62.00 and maintaining a "buy" rating, while other firms have downgraded or set a hold rating.
• Jefferies Financial Group recently reported revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, falling short of expectations, and it plans to distribute a $0.40 quarterly dividend to investors on August 29th.

Nuveen LLC bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 1,100,843 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $58,972,000. Nuveen LLC owned approximately 0.53% of Jefferies Financial Group as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of JEF. Advisory Services Network LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $259,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $35,122,000. Bessemer Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 2,030 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $159,000 after acquiring an additional 230 shares in the last quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 46.0% during the fourth quarter. Sterling Capital Management LLC now owns 8,223 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $645,000 after acquiring an additional 2,590 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Townsquare Capital LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth $216,000. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of Jefferies Financial Group stock traded down $0.24 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $59.79. The company's stock had a trading volume of 122,286 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,803,643. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a current ratio of 1.05. The business's fifty day moving average price is $56.30 and its 200-day moving average price is $55.41. The firm has a market cap of $12.33 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.56 and a beta of 1.48. 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 posted 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 the consensus estimate of $1.64 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.59% and a net margin of 7.70%.The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.64 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. Jefferies Financial Group's payout ratio is presently 60.38%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several analysts recently issued reports on JEF shares. Wall Street Zen lowered Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $54.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, June 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $66.00.

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.