Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Stock Has Consensus Price Target of $56.86 According to Brokerages

Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) have received a consensus recommendation of “Hold” from the seven analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $56.86.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $67.00 to $57.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, September 29th. Oppenheimer lowered their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $76.00 to $71.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th. BMO Capital Markets cut their price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $57.00 to $50.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, September 29th. Weiss Ratings downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 27th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $50.00 to $49.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, September 29th.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

JEF opened at $44.79 on Tuesday. The business has a fifty day moving average of $50.00 and a 200 day moving average of $51.52. The stock has a market cap of $8.47 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.27 and a beta of 1.57. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 1.02 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.09. Jefferies Financial Group has a 52-week low of $35.53 and a 52-week high of $66.60.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 25th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 16th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 16th. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.84%.

Jefferies Financial Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a share buyback program on Wednesday, June 24th that authorizes the company to buy back $250.00 million in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the financial services provider to repurchase up to 2% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Bank of Nova Scotia purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the second quarter valued at approximately $3,509,000. Amundi grew its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 378.7% in the second quarter. Amundi now owns 228,236 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $11,407,000 after purchasing an additional 180,553 shares in the last quarter. Nykredit A S bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the second quarter worth approximately $31,471,000. Berkshire Hathaway Inc purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 2nd quarter worth $21,669,000. Finally, Fideuram Intesa Sanpaolo Private Banking S.P.A. purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $2,941,000. 60.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Company Profile

Jefferies Financial Group Inc is a diversified financial services company that provides investment banking, capital markets, asset management and other financial services to corporations, institutional investors, governments and individual clients. Its principal operating business is Jefferies Group, an investment banking and securities firm.

Jefferies provides advisory services for mergers and acquisitions, restructurings and other strategic transactions, along with equity and debt underwriting, sales and trading, research, prime brokerage and securities services.