Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) Hits New 1-Year Low – What’s Next?

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)’s stock price reached a new 52-week low during trading on Monday . The company traded as low as $39.28 and last traded at $39.88, with a volume of 187624 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $43.14.

Analyst Ratings Changes

JEF has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Morgan Stanley downgraded Jefferies Financial Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $75.00 to $41.00 in a report on Monday. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $75.00 target price on Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, March 5th. Oppenheimer cut Jefferies Financial Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 19th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report on Monday, March 31st.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Down 3.7 %

The company has a market cap of $8.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.96 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a current ratio of 1.07 and a quick ratio of 1.07. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $63.94 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $69.25.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.60 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.88 by ($0.28). The company had revenue of $1.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.93 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 10.57% and a return on equity of 7.92%. Jefferies Financial Group’s revenue was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.87 earnings per share. On average, research analysts expect that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 EPS for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.85%. Jefferies Financial Group’s payout ratio is presently 55.36%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Hemington Wealth Management boosted its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 71.8% in the fourth quarter. Hemington Wealth Management now owns 335 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the third quarter valued at $32,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 158.3% in the 4th quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $40,000 after acquiring an additional 315 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

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.