D.A. Davidson & CO. Takes Position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

D.A. Davidson & CO. purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 5,593 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $439,000.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Hemington Wealth Management lifted its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 71.8% during the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth about $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC lifted its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 158.3% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after acquiring an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the third quarter worth about $32,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the company. Morgan Stanley upgraded Jefferies Financial Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price target for the company from $67.00 to $97.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Oppenheimer cut their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $82.00 to $81.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, January 3rd.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of Jefferies Financial Group stock opened at $64.76 on Wednesday. The firm has a market cap of $13.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.73 and a beta of 1.34. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $74.96 and its 200-day moving average is $69.35. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a one year low of $40.72 and a one year high of $82.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.97 by ($0.06). Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.92% and a net margin of 10.57%. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.83 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.30 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 63.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.47%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 14th. This is a positive change from Jefferies Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 53.69%.

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.