27,920 Shares in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Bought by Lisanti Capital Growth LLC

Lisanti Capital Growth LLC bought a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 27,920 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $1,718,000.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in JEF. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D increased its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 5.6% during the third quarter. State of New Jersey Common Pension Fund D now owns 46,979 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,892,000 after acquiring an additional 2,486 shares in the last quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 70.8% in the 3rd quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 19,474 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,199,000 after buying an additional 8,074 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 7.1% in the third quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 7,290 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $449,000 after acquiring an additional 481 shares during the period. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC bought a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the third quarter worth about $219,000. Finally, Americana Partners LLC bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth about $219,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.88% of the company's stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of JEF stock traded up $2.54 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $74.04. The stock had a trading volume of 2,521,225 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,256,416. The firm has a market cap of $15.22 billion, a PE ratio of 31.99 and a beta of 1.31. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.49 and a fifty-two week high of $75.81. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $62.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $54.75. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last posted 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). Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.40% and a net margin of 9.27%. The company had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.32 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 42.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.89%. Jefferies Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.83%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 400,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. In other 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 transaction of $28,904,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo bought 9,247,081 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $59.67 per share, for a total transaction of $551,773,323.27. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 9,247,081 shares in the company, valued at approximately $551,773,323.27. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 1,286,923 shares of company stock valued at $88,999,151 in the last ninety days. Corporate insiders own 20.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JEF has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. Finally, UBS Group initiated coverage on Jefferies Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, September 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $67.00 target price for the company.

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.