US Bancorp DE Has $1.89 Million Stock Position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

US Bancorp DE decreased its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF - Free Report) by 19.1% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 30,649 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 7,220 shares during the period. US Bancorp DE's holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $1,886,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Rothschild Investment LLC bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV lifted its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 75.7% in the second quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 520 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc boosted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 1,993.8% during the second quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 670 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 638 shares during the period. Eastern Bank bought a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the third quarter worth about $42,000. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the second quarter worth about $48,000. 60.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In other Jefferies Financial Group news, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo purchased 9,247,081 shares of the company'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 transaction, the director now owns 9,247,081 shares in the company, valued at $551,773,323.27. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. In other Jefferies Financial Group news, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo purchased 9,247,081 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Thursday, September 19th. The shares were purchased at an average price of $59.67 per share, for a total transaction of $551,773,323.27. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now owns 9,247,081 shares in the company, valued at $551,773,323.27. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, President Brian P. Friedman sold 247,326 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 30th. The shares were sold at an average price of $65.20, for a total value of $16,125,655.20. Following the completion of the transaction, the president now directly owns 1,632,277 shares in the company, valued at $106,424,460.40. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 1,286,923 shares of company stock worth $88,999,151. 20.40% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

JEF has been the topic of several recent research reports. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Tuesday. 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

JEF stock traded down $1.64 during trading on Thursday, hitting $70.42. The company had a trading volume of 1,805,459 shares, compared to its average volume of 1,247,143. The business has a 50 day moving average of $62.30 and a 200 day moving average of $54.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $14.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.47 and a beta of 1.31. The company has a current ratio of 1.03, a quick ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $33.16 and a fifty-two week high of $72.76.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share 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 during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.32 earnings per share. The company's revenue was up 42.4% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be paid a dividend of $0.35 per share. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.99%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. Jefferies Financial Group's payout ratio is currently 59.83%.

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.