KBC Group NV Sells 4,951 Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. $JEF

KBC Group NV reduced its position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 4.4% in the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 107,253 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 4,951 shares during the quarter. KBC Group NV owned approximately 0.05% of Jefferies Financial Group worth $5,866,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Elequin Capital LP increased its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 117.9% in the first quarter. Elequin Capital LP now owns 549 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after purchasing an additional 297 shares in the last quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 48.8% during the 2nd quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 912 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $50,000 after purchasing an additional 299 shares in the last quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. lifted its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 3,577.8% in the 2nd quarter. Hantz Financial Services Inc. now owns 993 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $54,000 after acquiring an additional 966 shares in the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc lifted its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 87.9% in the 1st quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,387 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $74,000 after acquiring an additional 649 shares in the last quarter. Finally, BI Asset Management Fondsmaeglerselskab A S bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the first quarter worth $78,000. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Down 0.8%

Shares of JEF opened at $55.42 on Friday. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $59.27 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $56.69. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.28 and a 1 year high of $82.68. The firm has a market cap of $11.43 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.04 and a beta of 1.53.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Monday, September 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.22. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 7.25%. The firm had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.75 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.75 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 21.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.98%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts recently weighed in on JEF shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday. Telsey Advisory Group set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, September 30th. Wall Street Zen raised Jefferies Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, September 20th. Capital One Financial set a $55.00 target price on Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Friday, October 17th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $84.00 to $74.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Jefferies Financial Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.83.

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.