Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC Buys 1,406,920 Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC grew its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 76.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 3,236,862 shares of the financial services provider's stock after buying an additional 1,406,920 shares during the quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC owned about 1.54% of Jefferies Financial Group worth $130,802,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Belpointe Asset Management LLC raised its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 56.7% during the 1st quarter. Belpointe Asset Management LLC now owns 1,147 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $36,000 after buying an additional 415 shares in the last quarter. Washington Trust Advisors Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $45,000. Allworth Financial LP raised its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 56.6% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,126 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 407 shares in the last quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 175.7% in the 3rd quarter. Ronald Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,362 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 868 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Itau Unibanco Holding S.A. bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $53,000. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Down 0.7 %

JEF stock traded down $0.29 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $44.16. The company's stock had a trading volume of 755,248 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,076,398. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. The company has a market capitalization of $9.36 billion, a PE ratio of 36.20 and a beta of 1.37. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $28.81 and a 12 month high of $47.39. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $42.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $38.73.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.87 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.11. The company had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.52 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 5.90% and a return on equity of 4.42%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 35.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.55 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts expect that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be paid a $0.30 dividend. This represents a $1.20 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 17th. Jefferies Financial Group's payout ratio is 98.36%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Friday. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 2nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Jefferies Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and a consensus target price of $43.33.

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.