Intrinsic Value Partners LLC Cuts Holdings in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Intrinsic Value Partners LLC decreased its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 0.6% in the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 31,363 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 175 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group accounts for about 1.9% of Intrinsic Value Partners LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 15th biggest holding. Intrinsic Value Partners LLC’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $1,930,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. 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 worth $2,892,000 after purchasing an additional 2,486 shares in the last quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC boosted its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 70.8% in the third quarter. Carmel Capital Partners LLC now owns 19,474 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,199,000 after acquiring an additional 8,074 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP grew its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 7.1% during the third quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 7,290 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $449,000 after acquiring an additional 481 shares during the last quarter. Phillips Wealth Planners LLC acquired a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the third quarter valued at about $219,000. Finally, Americana Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the third quarter worth $219,000. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have recently weighed in on JEF. Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Monday, September 23rd. UBS Group initiated coverage on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price target on the stock. Finally, 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.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Up 1.5 %

Shares of NYSE JEF opened at $71.50 on Monday. The firm has a market cap of $14.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.56 and a beta of 1.31. 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 quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $33.16 and a 52-week high of $72.76.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) 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 firm had revenue of $1.68 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.32 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 42.4% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 18th will be issued a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.96%. Jefferies Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 59.83%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Jefferies Financial Group news, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo purchased 9,247,081 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, September 19th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $59.67 per share, with a total value 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 acquisition was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this link. In other news, President Brian P. Friedman sold 200,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, October 10th. The shares were sold at an average price of $63.09, for a total value of $12,618,000.00. Following the completion of the sale, the president now owns 604,606 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $38,144,592.54. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo acquired 9,247,081 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $59.67 per share, for a total transaction of $551,773,323.27. Following the completion of the acquisition, the director now directly owns 9,247,081 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $551,773,323.27. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 1,286,923 shares of company stock valued at $88,999,151 in the last 90 days. 20.40% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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.