Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Holdings Lowered by Centennial Bank AR

Centennial Bank AR lessened its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 1.3% during the second quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 25,998 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 354 shares during the quarter. Centennial Bank AR’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $1,294,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC raised its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 88.9% in the 1st quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 6,113,391 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $269,601,000 after purchasing an additional 2,876,529 shares in the last quarter. Marshall Wace LLP increased its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 365.9% in the second quarter. Marshall Wace LLP now owns 1,947,192 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $96,892,000 after buying an additional 1,529,218 shares in the last quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP acquired a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at $58,211,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth $21,148,000. Finally, Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC grew its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 12.9% in the 2nd quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC now owns 3,396,255 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $168,998,000 after acquiring an additional 389,385 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on JEF shares. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. UBS Group started coverage on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. They set a “buy” rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock. Finally, Oppenheimer raised their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $64.00 to $66.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, September 13th.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo acquired 9,247,081 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $59.67 per share, with a total value of $551,773,323.27. Following the acquisition, the director now owns 9,247,081 shares in the company, valued at $551,773,323.27. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 20.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE JEF opened at $61.85 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.91. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a one year low of $31.38 and a one year high of $62.98. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $58.00 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $50.51. The company has a market capitalization of $12.71 billion, a P/E ratio of 34.17 and a beta of 1.32.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 5.37% and a net margin of 7.82%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 42.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.32 EPS. Analysts anticipate that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Investors of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.26%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.35%.

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.