Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) Shares Gap Up - What's Next?

Key Points

• Jefferies Financial Group shares opened at $51.51, up from a previous close of $48.80, indicating strong market interest with a last traded price of $51.98.
• Analysts have set varying price targets for the stock, with a consensus target of $68.83 and a mix of ratings including "Strong Buy" and "Hold."
• The company has recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40, translating to a 3.1% dividend yield, scheduled for payment on November 26th.

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) gapped up before the market opened on Friday . The stock had previously closed at $48.80, but opened at $51.51. Jefferies Financial Group shares last traded at $51.98, with a volume of 2,264,163 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JEF has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley set a $74.00 price objective on Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Telsey Advisory Group set a $74.00 price objective on Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $69.00 to $55.00 and set a "market perform" rating on the stock in a report on Friday. Zacks Research upgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. Finally, Capital One Financial set a $55.00 target price on Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Friday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $68.83.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Up 4.7%

The company has a market cap of $10.54 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.56 and a beta of 1.51. The company has a current ratio of 1.05, a quick ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $62.46 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $55.21.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, September 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.22. The business had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.75 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.25% and a net margin of 7.40%.The firm's quarterly revenue was up 21.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.75 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Investors of record on Monday, November 17th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Jefferies Financial Group's payout ratio is presently 54.98%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

Large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Teacher Retirement System of Texas grew its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 38.6% in the 1st quarter. Teacher Retirement System of Texas now owns 29,542 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,583,000 after buying an additional 8,229 shares in the last quarter. Richard Bernstein Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the first quarter worth approximately $2,467,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC boosted its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 18.5% during the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 4,922 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $264,000 after purchasing an additional 768 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the first quarter worth approximately $262,000. Finally, GF Fund Management CO. LTD. bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the first quarter worth approximately $462,000. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company's stock.

About Jefferies Financial Group

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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