Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) Reaches New 1-Year High at $51.36

Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $51.36 and last traded at $50.95, with a volume of 116663 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $50.73.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have commented on JEF shares. Oppenheimer increased their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $56.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, June 14th. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, June 21st. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $44.33.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

The firm's 50 day moving average price is $45.94 and its 200-day moving average price is $43.18. The firm has a market cap of $10.83 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.21 and a beta of 1.34. 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 (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, June 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.64 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.63 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $1.66 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.59 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 5.37% and a net margin of 7.82%. Jefferies Financial Group's quarterly revenue was up 59.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.29 earnings per share. On average, analysts anticipate that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.16 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 30th. Investors of record on Monday, August 19th will be given a $0.35 dividend. This is a boost from Jefferies Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.30. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.74%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 19th. Jefferies Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 66.30%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 1,500,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total value of $65,250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 15,314,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at $666,165,525. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. In other Jefferies Financial Group news, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 1,500,000 shares of Jefferies Financial Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total transaction of $65,250,000.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 15,314,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at $666,165,525. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, President Brian P. Friedman sold 55,000 shares of Jefferies Financial Group stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $46.30, for a total value of $2,546,500.00. Following the transaction, the president now directly owns 2,591,350 shares of the company's stock, valued at $119,979,505. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 20.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Institutional Trading of Jefferies Financial Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 75.7% during the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 520 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the period. Cetera Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth about $267,000. PGGM Investments grew its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 41.8% during the 1st quarter. PGGM Investments now owns 65,874 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $2,905,000 after buying an additional 19,430 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth about $404,000. Finally, Algebris UK Ltd acquired a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth about $2,154,000. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.