JPMorgan Chase & Co. Has $154.15 Million Position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 7.2% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,504,513 shares of the financial services provider's stock after acquiring an additional 167,270 shares during the quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. owned approximately 1.22% of Jefferies Financial Group worth $154,153,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. bought a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $286,476,000. FMR LLC raised its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 782.5% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,286,958 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $202,312,000 after purchasing an additional 2,914,504 shares during the period. Marshall Wace LLP lifted its stake 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 worth $96,892,000 after buying an additional 1,529,218 shares during the last quarter. Barrow Hanley Mewhinney & Strauss LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 12.9% during 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 buying an additional 389,385 shares during the period. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 95.7% in the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 780,877 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $48,063,000 after buying an additional 381,893 shares during the last quarter. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 400,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.26, for a total value of $28,904,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 14,971,288 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,081,825,270.88. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, President Brian P. Friedman sold 247,326 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.20, for a total transaction of $16,125,655.20. Following the completion of the sale, the president now directly owns 1,632,277 shares in the company, valued at $106,424,460.40. This trade represents a 13.16 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,286,923 shares of company stock valued at $88,999,151 over the last three months. 20.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $73.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Thursday, November 14th. Morgan Stanley raised Jefferies Financial Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $67.00 to $97.00 in a research report on Monday, December 9th. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $67.00 target price on the stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:JEF traded down $0.47 on Wednesday, hitting $78.40. 1,394,262 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,279,182. The company's 50 day moving average price is $74.64 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $63.17. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.50 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a current ratio of 1.03. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a one year low of $38.77 and a one year high of $82.04.

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.