Plato Investment Management Ltd Sells 8,975 Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. $JEF

Key Points

• Plato Investment Management Ltd significantly reduced its stake in Jefferies Financial Group Inc by 89.7%, selling 8,975 shares and retaining only 1,034 shares valued at $56,000.
• Several institutional investors have increased their holdings in Jefferies, with notable boosts from Elequin Capital LP and JCIC Asset Management Inc, increasing their shares by 117.9% and 193.8% respectively.
• Analyst ratings for Jefferies Financial Group are mixed, with a consensus rating of "Hold" and a revised target price increasing from $54.00 to $72.00 from Morgan Stanley.

Plato Investment Management Ltd decreased its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 89.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 1,034 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 8,975 shares during the quarter. Plato Investment Management Ltd's holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $56,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Elequin Capital LP boosted its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 117.9% during the first quarter. Elequin Capital LP now owns 549 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $29,000 after acquiring an additional 297 shares during the last quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 193.8% during the first quarter. JCIC Asset Management Inc. now owns 705 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $38,000 after acquiring an additional 465 shares during the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 637 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 87.9% during the first 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 last quarter. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the first quarter worth $78,000. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $54.00 to $72.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, September 8th. Zacks Research upgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a "strong sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, September 4th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $70.50.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

JEF stock opened at $66.66 on Friday. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $39.28 and a 52 week high of $82.68. 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 company has a fifty day simple moving average of $59.81 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $54.66. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 25.15 and a beta of 1.49.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.44 by ($0.04). The business had revenue of $1.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate 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 last year, the business earned $0.64 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 18th were issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 18th. Jefferies Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.38%.

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.

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