Twin Tree Management LP Invests $3.12 Million in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Twin Tree Management LP purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 39,776 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $3,118,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in JEF. Hemington Wealth Management boosted its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 71.8% during the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the third quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC boosted its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 158.3% during the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on JEF shares. Oppenheimer dropped their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $82.00 to $81.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $92.00 to $81.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group set a $75.00 price target on Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, March 5th.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Up 1.4 %

Shares of JEF stock opened at $58.44 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $12.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.61 and a beta of 1.37. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a twelve month low of $40.72 and a twelve month high of $82.68. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $69.13 and a 200 day moving average of $69.49. 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 (NYSE:JEF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 8th. The financial services provider reported $0.91 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.97 by ($0.06). The business had revenue of $1.96 billion during 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 firm’s quarterly revenue was up 63.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.30 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 EPS for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 14th were given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, February 14th. 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 2.74%. Jefferies Financial Group’s payout ratio is 53.69%.

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.