Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd Acquires New Position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Gordian Capital Singapore Pte Ltd bought a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund bought 1,800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $141,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of JEF. Hemington Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 71.8% during the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares during the period. V Square Quantitative Management LLC acquired a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Principal Securities Inc. raised its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 161.4% in the fourth quarter. Principal Securities Inc. now owns 575 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 355 shares during the period. Finally, Private Trust Co. NA raised its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 346.6% in the fourth quarter. Private Trust Co. NA now owns 652 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $51,000 after purchasing an additional 506 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE JEF opened at $48.29 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $49.69 and a 200 day moving average price of $65.11. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.96 billion, a PE ratio of 16.20 and a beta of 1.47. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 52 week low of $39.28 and a 52 week high of $82.68.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by ($0.28). Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.92% and a net margin of 10.57%. The company had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.87 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.31%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 55.36%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

JEF has been the topic of several research analyst reports. StockNews.com downgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. Morgan Stanley cut Jefferies Financial Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their target price for the stock from $75.00 to $41.00 in a research note on Monday, April 7th. Oppenheimer cut Jefferies Financial Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $55.00 to $62.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have issued a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Jefferies Financial Group has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $62.75.

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.