Jefferies Financial Group Inc. $JEF Stock Acquired by Private Management Group Inc.

Private Management Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 1.9% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 767,534 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 14,616 shares during the quarter. Private Management Group Inc.’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $35,099,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of JEF. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the second quarter valued at about $834,947,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the second quarter valued at about $127,242,000. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 2.2% during the first quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 2,666,097 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $110,015,000 after acquiring an additional 58,585 shares during the last quarter. Bamco Inc. NY purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $107,044,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $79,537,000. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE JEF opened at $49.44 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $9.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.55 and a beta of 1.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09, a current ratio of 1.02 and a quick ratio of 1.02. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $47.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of $50.60. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 1-year low of $35.53 and a 1-year high of $66.60.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 16th. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.84%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently commented on JEF. Weiss Ratings lowered shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a report on Thursday, August 27th. Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $76.00 to $71.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, October 19th. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $67.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Finally, BMO Capital Markets decreased their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $57.00 to $50.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $56.86.

Jefferies Financial Group Company Profile

Jefferies Financial Group Inc is a global financial services company whose principal business is conducted through Jefferies, its investment banking and capital markets business. Jefferies advises companies and financial sponsors on mergers and acquisitions, restructurings and other strategic matters, and helps clients raise capital through debt and equity offerings. It also provides securities research, sales and trading, and related services to institutional investors and other clients.

The company serves clients across the Americas, Europe, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific.