Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Shares Sold by Mackenzie Financial Corp

Mackenzie Financial Corp reduced its position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 25.8% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 27,834 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,679 shares during the period. Mackenzie Financial Corp’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $1,125,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in JEF. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 1,093.0% in the 3rd quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 1,829,942 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $67,031,000 after purchasing an additional 1,676,549 shares during the period. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 100.4% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 1,290,810 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $47,282,000 after acquiring an additional 646,666 shares in the last quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 80.2% in the 3rd quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. now owns 1,265,002 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $46,337,000 after acquiring an additional 562,810 shares in the last quarter. Strs Ohio increased its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 1,126.9% in the 4th quarter. Strs Ohio now owns 587,412 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $23,737,000 after acquiring an additional 539,534 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Trexquant Investment LP purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth $7,713,000. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

Jefferies Financial Group stock opened at $44.58 on Thursday. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 52-week low of $28.81 and a 52-week high of $47.39. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.54 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $43.04 and a 200-day simple moving average of $39.21. The company has a quick ratio of 0.91, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.28.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, March 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.87 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.11. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 5.90% and a return on equity of 4.41%. The business had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.52 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.55 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 35.4% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 3.38 EPS 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 30th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 20th will be given a dividend of $0.30 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 17th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.69%. Jefferies Financial Group’s payout ratio is 98.36%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently commented on JEF. Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $52.00 to $54.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 2nd. StockNews.com lowered shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 13th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, one has given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $43.33.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 1,500,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.50, for a total transaction of $65,250,000.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 15,314,150 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $666,165,525. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 20.40% of the company’s stock.

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.