Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) Announces Quarterly Earnings Results

Key Points

• Jefferies reported Q1 EPS of $0.70, missing consensus by $0.19, while revenue was $2.02 billion (up 26.6% year‑over‑year); write‑offs tied to First Brands and other private‑credit losses weighed on margins and the headline result.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40 (annualized $1.60), implying a ~4.0% yield and a payout ratio of about 56.5%, supporting income‑oriented investors.
• The stock is caught between takeover speculation (Japan’s SMFG) and downside risks from regulatory/legal investigations and analyst price‑target cuts, leaving a MarketBeat consensus rating of Hold.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday. The financial services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.89 by ($0.19), FiscalAI reports. The business had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.27% and a net margin of 6.56%.The business's revenue for the quarter was up 26.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.57 EPS.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

NYSE JEF opened at $39.62 on Thursday. The stock has a market capitalization of $8.18 billion, a PE ratio of 14.00 and a beta of 1.52. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $51.02 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $56.70. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. Jefferies Financial Group has a 12-month low of $35.53 and a 12-month high of $71.04.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Investors of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.0%. Jefferies Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 56.54%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Alberta Investment Management Corp bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $1,574,000. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV raised its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 593.9% in the 4th quarter. Mercer Global Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 185,791 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $11,513,000 after acquiring an additional 159,016 shares during the period. EP Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth $269,000. NewEdge Advisors LLC lifted its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 8.3% during the 4th quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 36,347 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,252,000 after acquiring an additional 2,772 shares during the last quarter. Finally, XTX Topco Ltd boosted its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 413.3% during the fourth quarter. XTX Topco Ltd now owns 21,870 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,355,000 after acquiring an additional 17,609 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.88% of the company's stock.

More Jefferies Financial Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting Jefferies Financial Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Robust investment‑banking performance — Q1 revenue rose ~26% with strong IB and underwriting results that helped net earnings increase year‑over‑year. This supports the firm’s underlying franchise and cash generation. Jefferies Announces First-Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend boost — Jefferies declared a $0.40 quarterly dividend (≈4.0% yield), which supports income‑oriented investor interest and can help stabilize the share base. Jefferies Financial Group declares $0.40 dividend
• Positive Sentiment: Takeover speculation — Continued media reports that Japan’s SMFG is exploring options for Jefferies (and an increased SMFG stake) have been a lift to the stock by implying a potential strategic bid premium. Japan’s SMFG is considering a takeover of Jefferies
• Neutral Sentiment: Conflicting takeover signals — Follow‑up reports and company/market comments indicated SMFG has “no immediate plan” and Jefferies has pushed back on selling, making an acquisition uncertain despite earlier upside. Jefferies shares cut gains on report Japan's SMFG has no immediate takeover plan
• Negative Sentiment: Credit hit and earnings surprise — Reported Q1 EPS came in below some street expectations after write‑offs tied to First Brands and other private‑credit losses (FT: ~$10m write‑off; other coverage cites ~$17m in private‑lending losses), which eroded the headline beat in revenue and weighed on margins. That drove part of today’s weakness. Jefferies reports new $10mn First Brands loss as it writes off exposure
• Negative Sentiment: Regulatory / litigation risk — Law firms (Pomerantz and others) have opened investigations into Jefferies, adding legal and disclosure overhangs that can amplify volatility. INVESTOR ALERT: Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims On Behalf of Investors of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. - JEF
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst pressure — At least one visible price‑target cut (BMO to $42) and mixed analyst takeaways on the quarter increase downside risk if investors demand a lower valuation for the credit/legal uncertainty. BMO Capital Markets Lowers Jefferies Financial Group NYSE: JEF Price Target to $42.00

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently issued reports on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $61.00 to $54.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c-)" rating on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and set a $49.00 target price on the stock. in a research report on Monday, March 9th. BMO Capital Markets reduced their price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $68.00 to $42.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $76.00 to $59.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, Jefferies Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $58.14.

Jefferies Financial Group Company Profile

Jefferies Financial Group Inc is a diversified financial services company that provides a range of investment banking, capital markets and asset management services to corporations, governments and institutional investors worldwide. Through its core platform, Jefferies offers advisory services for mergers and acquisitions, debt and equity underwriting, restructuring and recapitalization. The firm also operates a global sales and trading business covering equities, fixed income and foreign exchange products, complemented by equity research and macroeconomic analysis.

In addition to its capital markets franchise, Jefferies maintains a growing asset management division that delivers customized investment solutions across public and private markets.