Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC Reduces Stock Position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC decreased its position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 14.3% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 6,000 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 1,000 shares during the quarter. Baker Ellis Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $265,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,694 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $957,000 after buying an additional 321 shares during the period. LPL Financial LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 0.4% in the third quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 102,487 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,754,000 after buying an additional 395 shares during the period. Allworth Financial LP lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 56.6% during the fourth quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,126 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $46,000 after purchasing an additional 407 shares during the last quarter. United Services Automobile Association lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 3.7% during the third quarter. United Services Automobile Association now owns 11,573 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $424,000 after purchasing an additional 409 shares during the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 0.8% during the fourth quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 59,046 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,386,000 after purchasing an additional 448 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Up 1.7 %

Shares of Jefferies Financial Group stock opened at $49.76 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $45.56 and a 200 day moving average price of $42.92. The company has a market cap of $10.55 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.49 and a beta of 1.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $31.38 and a 1 year high of $50.49.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.76 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.52 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 5.37% and a net margin of 7.82%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.55 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. This is an increase from Jefferies Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.81%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 19th. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, President Brian P. Friedman sold 55,000 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.30, for a total value of $2,546,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 2,591,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $119,979,505. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. In other Jefferies Financial Group news, President Brian P. Friedman sold 55,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.30, for a total value of $2,546,500.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 2,591,350 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $119,979,505. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 1,500,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total value of $65,250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 15,314,150 shares in the company, valued at $666,165,525. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Company insiders own 20.40% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on JEF shares. Oppenheimer upped their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com downgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $44.33.

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.