Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) has received an average rating of “Hold” from the seven brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold recommendation and two have assigned a buy recommendation to the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $62.75.

JEF has been the topic of several research reports. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $67.00 price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, September 9th. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $65.00 to $61.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, September 11th. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $44.00 to $50.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Weiss Ratings cut shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research report on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Capital One Financial set a $57.00 price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Friday, September 11th.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE JEF opened at $47.87 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 0.98 and a quick ratio of 0.98. Jefferies Financial Group has a 1-year low of $35.53 and a 1-year high of $71.04. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $54.07 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $50.71. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.27 billion, a PE ratio of 13.37 and a beta of 1.52.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, June 24th. The financial services provider reported $1.02 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.16 by ($0.14). Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 9.23% and a net margin of 7.58%.The firm had revenue of $2.21 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.30 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.40 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 35.0% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group will post 3.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, August 18th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, August 18th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.3%. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 44.69%.

Jefferies Financial Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share repurchase plan on Wednesday, June 24th that authorizes the company to buyback $250.00 million in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to purchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are usually an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. BlackRock Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $834,947,000. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $127,242,000. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth about $145,584,000. Bamco Inc. NY purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $107,044,000. Finally, Freestone Grove Partners LP bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the second quarter worth about $79,537,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Key Jefferies Financial Group News

Here are the key news stories impacting Jefferies Financial Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Oppenheimer said Jefferies Financial Group could benefit from a revival in mergers and acquisitions, which would support its investment-banking advisory and underwriting businesses. A stronger deal environment would provide a potential earnings catalyst for JEF. Jefferies Financial Group Seen Benefiting From M&A Revival, Oppenheimer Says
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies-linked fund disclosures reportedly indicate that Radiant World may have only about $10,000 in cash and substantially lower inventories than previously expected. The fund’s connection to Jefferies could create reputational or investment-related concerns, although the reports do not establish the size of any direct exposure on JEF’s balance sheet. Jefferies-linked fund says Radiant World may hold just $10,000 in cash
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies hosted or participated in its India Forum, where companies including DLF, Phoenix Mills, Sona BLW Precision Forgings and Hitachi Energy India presented to investors. The activity reinforces Jefferies’ research, sales and corporate-access franchise, but the announcements do not directly change JEF’s earnings outlook. Jefferies India Forum company announcements
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies maintained constructive views on Solar Industries, Paytm and Groww’s parent company. These recommendations may support perceptions of the firm’s equity-research franchise, though any financial benefit to JEF is likely indirect. Jefferies analyst recommendations

Jefferies Financial Group Company Profile

Jefferies Financial Group Inc (NYSE:JEF) is a diversified financial services company that provides investment banking, capital markets, asset management and wealth management services. Its principal operating business, Jefferies, advises companies, governments and institutional investors on mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, restructuring and other strategic transactions.

Through its investment banking and securities operations, Jefferies offers equity and fixed-income underwriting, sales and trading, research, prime brokerage and related services.