Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Shares Sold by Bank of New York Mellon Corp

Bank of New York Mellon Corp cut its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 10.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,727,982 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 212,360 shares during the quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp owned approximately 0.84% of Jefferies Financial Group worth $135,474,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hemington Wealth Management increased its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 71.8% during the 4th quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 335 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC acquired a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 158.3% in the 4th 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 acquired a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE:JEF traded down $2.42 during midday trading on Monday, reaching $63.78. 1,437,662 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,349,209. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $40.72 and a twelve month high of $82.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $13.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.40 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $74.08 and a 200 day moving average price of $69.60.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 8th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.06). Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 10.57% and a return on equity of 7.92%. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.83 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.30 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 63.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Investors of record on Friday, February 14th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.51%. This is a positive change from Jefferies Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. Jefferies Financial Group's payout ratio is currently 53.69%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on JEF. Morgan Stanley upgraded Jefferies Financial Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $67.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Oppenheimer decreased their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $82.00 to $81.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd.

About Jefferies Financial Group

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.