Two Sigma Investments LP Purchases 57,964 Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Two Sigma Investments LP lifted its stake in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 9.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 655,655 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 57,964 shares during the period. Two Sigma Investments LP owned 0.32% of Jefferies Financial Group worth $51,403,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the business. Tidal Investments LLC increased its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 392.1% in the 4th quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 20,168 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,581,000 after buying an additional 16,070 shares in the last quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC increased its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 7.3% in the 4th quarter. ProShare Advisors LLC now owns 7,595 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $595,000 after buying an additional 518 shares in the last quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP increased its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Quantinno Capital Management LP now owns 107,439 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $8,423,000 after buying an additional 8,196 shares in the last quarter. Nomura Holdings Inc. purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth $1,689,000. Finally, NorthRock Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth $450,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.88% of the company's stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Trading Down 1.3%

Shares of NYSE:JEF traded down $0.62 during trading on Friday, reaching $48.27. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,918,393 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,622,191. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $39.28 and a 12 month high of $82.68. The firm's 50 day simple moving average is $49.31 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $64.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.96 billion, a PE ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 1.47.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.60 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by ($0.28). Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 10.57% and a return on equity of 7.92%. The business had revenue of $1.59 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.87 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.31%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. Jefferies Financial Group's payout ratio is currently 55.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on JEF. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $75.00 to $41.00 in a report on Monday, April 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, May 13th. Finally, Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. One 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 MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $62.75.

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.