Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Receives $57.14 Consensus Target Price from Brokerages

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) has earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the seven ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. The average 1-year price objective among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $57.1429.

Several research analysts have weighed in on JEF shares. Oppenheimer lowered their price objective on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $97.00 to $74.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, March 13th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, March 11th. BMO Capital Markets lowered their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $68.00 to $42.00 and set a “market perform” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 23rd. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $54.00 to $47.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

Several institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 75.0% during the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth $27,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the third quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Nvwm LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:JEF opened at $39.84 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73. Jefferies Financial Group has a twelve month low of $35.53 and a twelve month high of $71.04. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $50.07 and its 200-day moving average is $56.30. The firm has a market capitalization of $8.23 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.46 and a beta of 1.52.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, March 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.70 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.89 by ($0.19). The business had revenue of $2.02 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.02 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 6.61% and a return on equity of 7.86%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 26.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.57 EPS. Sell-side analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group will post 4.41 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 18th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 18th. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 54.05%.

Key Headlines Impacting Jefferies Financial Group

Here are the key news stories impacting Jefferies Financial Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly dividend announced (0.40 per share, ~4.0% yield) — supports income investors and provides baseline shareholder support.
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large options activity — investors bought a big volume of JEF calls, signaling some speculative/hedged bullish interest in the shares.
• Positive Sentiment: Profit rose on dealmaking: Jefferies reported higher profits driven by investment‑banking revenue, which underpins the firm’s strength in advisory and markets. Jefferies profit rises on dealmaking
• Neutral Sentiment: Q1 results characterized as mixed — some outlets say earnings met consensus and revenue rose on strong IB and equities, but other reporting highlights offsetting weakness in fixed income and private credit. JEF’s Q1 Earnings Meet Estimates
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies’ research team made portfolio moves unrelated to JEF’s balance sheet (Christopher Wood sold HDFC Bank and cut India weightings) — reputational/newsflow effect for Jefferies as a broker, but indirect for JEF share value. Jefferies’ Chris Wood sells HDFC Bank
• Negative Sentiment: Private‑lending blowups produced a tangible charge (reported ~$17M in losses), which directly pressured quarterly results and investor sentiment around Jefferies’ credit exposure. How Did Private-Lending Blowups Affect Jefferies’ Bottom Line?
• Negative Sentiment: Jefferies disclosed an additional ~$10M First Brands loss/write‑off — another hit tied to credit exposures that reduced reported profitability. Jefferies reports new $10mn First Brands loss
• Negative Sentiment: Investor litigation inquiry: Pomerantz LLP has opened an investigation into claims on behalf of JEF investors, which raises legal/settlement risk and can weigh on sentiment. Pomerantz Law Firm Investigates Claims on Behalf of Investors of Jefferies
• Negative Sentiment: Goldman lowered its JEF price target (from $54 to $47) — while maintaining a buy, the cut reduces the analyst‑implied upside and can damp buying interest. Goldman Sachs lowed JEF price target

About Jefferies Financial Group

Jefferies Financial Group Inc is a diversified financial services company that provides a range of investment banking, capital markets and asset management services to corporations, governments and institutional investors worldwide. Through its core platform, Jefferies offers advisory services for mergers and acquisitions, debt and equity underwriting, restructuring and recapitalization. The firm also operates a global sales and trading business covering equities, fixed income and foreign exchange products, complemented by equity research and macroeconomic analysis.

In addition to its capital markets franchise, Jefferies maintains a growing asset management division that delivers customized investment solutions across public and private markets.