Retirement Systems of Alabama Sells 12,169 Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Retirement Systems of Alabama cut its position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 496,197 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 12,169 shares during the period. Retirement Systems of Alabama owned approximately 0.24% of Jefferies Financial Group worth $30,541,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also bought and sold shares of JEF. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 232.9% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 280,026 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $18,174,000 after purchasing an additional 195,902 shares during the last quarter. Tidal Investments LLC purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $252,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $32,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 20.7% during the 3rd quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 29,491 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $1,815,000 after acquiring an additional 5,065 shares during the period. Finally, Barclays PLC boosted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 20.6% during the 3rd quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 2,014,387 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $123,987,000 after acquiring an additional 344,409 shares during the last quarter. 60.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:JEF traded down $0.16 during trading on Friday, hitting $80.92. The company's stock had a trading volume of 1,153,901 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,267,420. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53, a current ratio of 1.03 and a quick ratio of 1.03. The firm has a market cap of $16.63 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.58 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a 50-day moving average of $71.45 and a 200-day moving average of $60.14. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $37.95 and a 12 month high of $81.92.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 business had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $0.32 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was up 42.4% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th were issued a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.73%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, November 18th. Jefferies Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 59.83%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Jefferies Financial Group

In related news, Director Robert D. Beyer sold 46,200 shares of Jefferies Financial Group stock in a transaction on Thursday, October 31st. The shares were sold at an average price of $64.07, for a total transaction of $2,960,034.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 100,375 shares in the company, valued at approximately $6,431,026.25. The trade was a 31.52 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo purchased 9,247,081 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $59.67 per share, with a total value of $551,773,323.27. Following the purchase, the director now directly owns 9,247,081 shares in the company, valued at $551,773,323.27. This represents a ∞ increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 1,286,923 shares of company stock valued at $88,999,151. Company insiders own 20.40% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

JEF has been the subject of several research reports. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Jefferies Financial Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their price objective for the company from $67.00 to $97.00 in a report on Monday, December 9th. Oppenheimer boosted their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $73.00 to $83.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Finally, UBS Group started coverage on Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. They set a "buy" rating and a $67.00 price target on the stock.

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.