18,101 Shares in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Bought by Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC

Susquehanna Fundamental Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm acquired 18,101 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $798,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $29,000. Allworth Financial LP grew 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 buying an additional 407 shares during the last quarter. Altshuler Shaham Ltd purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $47,000. Headlands Technologies LLC bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $71,000. Finally, CWM LLC raised its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 105.7% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 2,139 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $94,000 after acquiring an additional 1,099 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

JEF traded up $1.37 during trading on Monday, hitting $55.21. 551,887 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,079,763. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. The company has a market cap of $11.35 billion, a PE ratio of 29.75 and a beta of 1.34. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $47.11 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $43.83. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $31.38 and a 1 year high of $55.36.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.64 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.63 by $0.01. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 5.37% and a net margin of 7.82%. The business had revenue of $1.66 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.59 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.29 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 59.6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 19th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 19th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.54%. This is an increase from Jefferies Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 66.30%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on JEF shares. StockNews.com cut Jefferies Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, June 21st. Oppenheimer increased 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.

Insider Transactions at Jefferies Financial Group

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