Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC Sells 966 Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC trimmed its position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 15.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,421 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 966 shares during the period. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $334,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the second quarter valued at $25,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV increased its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 75.7% in the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc raised its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 1,993.8% in the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 638 shares in the last quarter. Eastern Bank purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth $48,000. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE JEF opened at $76.77 on Friday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $65.86 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $56.53. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 12-month low of $34.34 and a 12-month high of $77.53. The firm has a market cap of $15.78 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 32.81 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.78 by ($0.03). Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 9.27% and a return on equity of 6.40%. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.32 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was up 42.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.82%. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 59.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Jefferies Financial Group

In other news, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 400,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.26, for a total transaction of $28,904,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,971,288 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,081,825,270.88. The trade was a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, President Brian P. Friedman sold 200,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total value of $12,618,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 604,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,144,592.54. The trade was a 24.86 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 1,286,923 shares of company stock valued at $88,999,151 in the last quarter. Company insiders own 20.40% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price objective for the company. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $73.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd.

Jefferies Financial Group 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.