Jefferies Financial Group Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:JEF)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) was the target of unusually large options trading on Thursday. Investors acquired 4,246 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 413% compared to the typical daily volume of 827 call options.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 1,500,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total value of $65,250,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 15,314,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $666,165,525. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this link. In related news, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 1,500,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total transaction of $65,250,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 15,314,150 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $666,165,525. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President Brian P. Friedman sold 55,000 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Monday, May 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $46.30, for a total transaction of $2,546,500.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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. Corporate insiders own 20.40% of the company's stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

Several hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of JEF. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 1.4% in the fourth quarter. Redmont Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 23,694 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $957,000 after purchasing an additional 321 shares during the last quarter. HMS Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 3.7% in the 1st quarter. HMS Capital Management LLC now owns 10,038 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $443,000 after buying an additional 356 shares during the period. UMB Bank n.a. raised its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 5.0% during the 1st quarter. UMB Bank n.a. now owns 7,640 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $337,000 after buying an additional 364 shares during the last quarter. LPL Financial LLC lifted its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 0.4% during the 3rd quarter. LPL Financial LLC now owns 102,487 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,754,000 after acquiring an additional 395 shares during the period. Finally, Allworth Financial LP boosted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 56.6% in the 4th quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 1,126 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $46,000 after acquiring an additional 407 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.88% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, June 21st. Oppenheimer upped 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. Two 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 company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $44.33.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Up 6.4 %

Shares of JEF traded up $2.93 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $48.94. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,968,292 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,041,956. The firm has a market capitalization of $10.38 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 40.08 and a beta of 1.33. The company's 50-day moving average is $45.26 and its 200-day moving average is $42.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28. Jefferies Financial Group has a 52-week low of $31.38 and a 52-week high of $49.75.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.11. The firm had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.52 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 4.41% and a net margin of 5.90%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 35.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.55 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group will post 3.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.