Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Sees Large Increase in Short Interest

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) was the target of a significant growth in short interest in November. As of November 15th, there was short interest totalling 12,180,000 shares, a growth of 17.0% from the October 31st total of 10,410,000 shares. Based on an average trading volume of 1,600,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 7.6 days. Currently, 7.9% of the company’s stock are short sold.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE JEF traded down $0.27 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $77.95. 1,192,516 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,268,972. The company has a market cap of $16.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 33.31 and a beta of 1.35. Jefferies Financial Group has a 12-month low of $36.07 and a 12-month high of $80.53. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $68.39 and a 200 day moving average of $58.28. The company has a quick ratio of 1.03, a current ratio of 1.03 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.53.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, September 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $1.68 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.71 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.40% and a net margin of 9.27%. The firm’s revenue was up 42.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.32 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group will post 3.13 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 27th. Stockholders of record on Monday, November 18th were paid a $0.35 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Monday, November 18th. This represents a $1.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.80%. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 59.83%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, Director Mitsui Financial Grou Sumitomo purchased 9,247,081 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, September 19th. The stock was bought at an average cost of $59.67 per share, with a total value of $551,773,323.27. Following the completion of the purchase, the director now owns 9,247,081 shares in the company, valued at approximately $551,773,323.27. This represents a ∞ increase in their ownership of the stock. The purchase was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, CEO Richard B. Handler sold 400,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, November 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.26, for a total value of $28,904,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 14,971,288 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,081,825,270.88. This trade represents a 2.60 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last three months, insiders have sold 1,286,923 shares of company stock valued at $88,999,151. 20.40% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Rothschild Investment LLC acquired a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its stake in Jefferies Financial Group by 75.7% in the 2nd quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 520 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $32,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 1,993.8% during the 2nd quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 670 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 638 shares during the period. Finally, Eastern Bank bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $42,000. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on JEF. Oppenheimer raised their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $73.00 to $83.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, November 14th. UBS Group assumed coverage on Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Tuesday, September 17th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $67.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised their target price on Jefferies Financial Group from $59.00 to $64.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, September 23rd.

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.