Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) Given New $74.00 Price Target at The Goldman Sachs Group

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) had its target price reduced by The Goldman Sachs Group from $84.00 to $74.00 in a research note published on Tuesday morning,Benzinga reports. The Goldman Sachs Group currently has a buy rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

JEF has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Wall Street Zen upgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, September 20th. Telsey Advisory Group set a $74.00 price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, September 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, October 8th. BMO Capital Markets assumed coverage on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a report on Friday, October 3rd. They set a “market perform” rating and a $69.00 price objective on the stock. Finally, Zacks Research upgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Friday, October 3rd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, one has given a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $74.40.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of JEF stock opened at $53.86 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $62.70 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.25. The company has a quick ratio of 1.05, a current ratio of 1.05 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76. The firm has a market cap of $11.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.51 and a beta of 1.51. Jefferies Financial Group has a 12 month low of $39.28 and a 12 month high of $82.68.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, September 29th. The financial services provider reported $1.01 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by $0.22. The firm had revenue of $2.05 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.75 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.25% and a net margin of 7.40%.The company’s revenue was up 21.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.75 earnings per share. Research analysts expect that Jefferies Financial Group will post 4.41 EPS for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, November 26th. Shareholders of record on Monday, November 17th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, November 17th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.0%. Jefferies Financial Group’s payout ratio is presently 54.98%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 13.8% in the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 11,303 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $739,000 after acquiring an additional 1,371 shares in the last quarter. Shelton Wealth Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 5.3% during the 3rd quarter. Shelton Wealth Management LLC now owns 21,390 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,399,000 after purchasing an additional 1,084 shares in the last quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $204,000. Voya Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 71.8% during the 3rd quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 50,453 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,301,000 after purchasing an additional 21,085 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Wedmont Private Capital bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $231,000. 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.