Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Reduces Position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Thrivent Financial for Lutherans reduced its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 9.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 52,310 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 5,635 shares during the quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $4,101,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in JEF. Hemington Wealth Management grew its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 71.8% in 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 last quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in Jefferies Financial Group by 14.2% in the 4th quarter. Creative Financial Designs Inc. ADV now owns 1,223 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $96,000 after buying an additional 152 shares during the period. Caprock Group LLC grew its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 4.5% in the 4th quarter. Caprock Group LLC now owns 3,844 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $301,000 after buying an additional 165 shares during the last quarter. Greenleaf Trust increased its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 2.8% during the fourth quarter. Greenleaf Trust now owns 6,554 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $514,000 after buying an additional 179 shares during the period. Finally, Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 0.7% during the fourth quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 33,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,594,000 after acquiring an additional 234 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

JEF has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley cut their price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $92.00 to $81.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $75.00 target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, March 5th. Finally, Oppenheimer downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Wednesday, March 19th.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of JEF stock opened at $61.74 on Wednesday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $67.68 and its 200-day moving average price is $69.58. The stock has a market cap of $12.73 billion, a PE ratio of 20.72 and a beta of 1.37. The company has a current ratio of 1.07, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 12 month low of $40.72 and a 12 month high of $82.68.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 8th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.83 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 10.57% and a return on equity of 7.92%. The company’s revenue was up 63.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.30 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.40 dividend. This is a boost from Jefferies Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.35. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.59%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. Jefferies Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 53.69%.

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.