New York State Teachers Retirement System Trims Position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

New York State Teachers Retirement System cut its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 6.7% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 213,989 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 15,428 shares during the quarter. New York State Teachers Retirement System’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $13,171,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Pallas Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $219,000. Custom Index Systems LLC increased its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 71.5% during the 3rd quarter. Custom Index Systems LLC now owns 16,841 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,037,000 after purchasing an additional 7,021 shares in the last quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue increased its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 2.6% during the 3rd quarter. State of Alaska Department of Revenue now owns 18,859 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,160,000 after purchasing an additional 470 shares in the last quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC increased its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. Wealth Enhancement Advisory Services LLC now owns 143,113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,809,000 after purchasing an additional 1,150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Highland Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $1,175,000. 60.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

Jefferies Financial Group stock opened at $64.22 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $61.79 and its 200 day moving average price is $53.69. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $32.75 and a 1 year high of $67.79. The stock has a market capitalization of $13.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.44 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.32 EPS. Jefferies Financial Group’s revenue was up 42.4% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.18%. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.83%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer lifted their price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, September 13th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Jefferies Financial Group news, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo bought 9,247,081 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were bought at an average price of $59.67 per share, with a total value of $551,773,323.27. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 9,247,081 shares in the company, valued at $551,773,323.27. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. In other Jefferies Financial Group news, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo bought 9,247,081 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were bought at an average price of $59.67 per share, with a total value of $551,773,323.27. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 9,247,081 shares in the company, valued at $551,773,323.27. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, President Brian P. Friedman sold 200,000 shares of Jefferies Financial Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 10th. The stock was sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total transaction of $12,618,000.00. Following the sale, the president now directly owns 604,606 shares in the company, valued at approximately $38,144,592.54. This trade represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 493,526 shares of company stock valued at $31,703,689 in the last 90 days. 20.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Jefferies Financial Group Company 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.