Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Given Average Rating of “Moderate Buy” by Analysts

Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) have been assigned a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” from the seven ratings firms that are covering the company, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $72.7143.

Several research firms recently issued reports on JEF. Morgan Stanley set a $78.00 target price on Jefferies Financial Group and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. BMO Capital Markets dropped their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $69.00 to $55.00 and set a “market perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 17th. Telsey Advisory Group set a $74.00 price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Tuesday, September 30th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 1st. Finally, Capital One Financial set a $55.00 target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Friday, October 17th.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Allworth Financial LP increased its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 11.2% in the 3rd quarter. Allworth Financial LP now owns 2,159 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $141,000 after acquiring an additional 217 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 81.3% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 1,117 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $73,000 after acquiring an additional 501 shares during the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd grew its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 80.7% in the third quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 7,215 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $472,000 after purchasing an additional 3,223 shares in the last quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC increased its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 0.9% in the third quarter. CIBC Private Wealth Group LLC now owns 58,744 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,843,000 after purchasing an additional 542 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Prana Capital Management LP raised its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 26.7% during the third quarter. Prana Capital Management LP now owns 92,194 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $6,031,000 after purchasing an additional 19,413 shares in the last quarter. 60.88% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Jefferies Financial Group

Here are the key news stories impacting Jefferies Financial Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies research team is publicly bullish on commodity and sector themes that drive client trading and advisory activity — notably a high‑profile call forecasting record cash flow and margin expansion for gold miners by 2026, which can boost trading and underwriting volumes. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies is actively publishing actionable coverage and initiating Buy ratings (examples: Groww parent, Badger Meter, D‑Wave, IonQ, Ferguson, Birkenstock). Frequent Buy calls and initiations underline revenue opportunities from equity research, trading flow and investment‑banking pitches. Read More. Read More. Read More. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies analysts are getting media visibility and market access through TV appearances (e.g., Randy Konik on Nike) and thought leadership on macro topics (Indian rupee outlook by Chris Wood), which supports the firm’s brand but has an indirect, mixed impact on near‑term revenue. Read More. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Routine analyst coverage activity (maintained Hold on B&M, sector notes on defense, etc.) highlights steady research output but is unlikely by itself to move JEF shares materially. Read More. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Legal risk surfaced: a securities‑law firm announced an investigation into Jefferies and Point Bonita Capital tied to an SEC probe; that notice can pressure the stock because it raises the possibility of regulatory inquiries, litigation costs, and reputational damage. Investors should watch for official filings or disclosures from JEF. Read More.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE JEF opened at $61.97 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $12.78 billion, a PE ratio of 21.29 and a beta of 1.52. Jefferies Financial Group has a 1 year low of $39.28 and a 1 year high of $82.68. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $56.31 and a 200-day moving average price of $58.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a current ratio of 1.05 and a quick ratio of 1.05.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last issued its earnings results on Monday, September 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.01 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.79 by $0.22. The company had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.75 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 7.40% and a return on equity of 7.25%. Jefferies Financial Group’s quarterly revenue was up 21.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.75 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Jefferies Financial Group will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 17th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 17th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 54.98%.

About Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group Inc is a diversified financial services company that provides a range of investment banking, capital markets and asset management services to corporations, governments and institutional investors worldwide. Through its core platform, Jefferies offers advisory services for mergers and acquisitions, debt and equity underwriting, restructuring and recapitalization. The firm also operates a global sales and trading business covering equities, fixed income and foreign exchange products, complemented by equity research and macroeconomic analysis.

In addition to its capital markets franchise, Jefferies maintains a growing asset management division that delivers customized investment solutions across public and private markets.