Shelton Capital Management Sells 579 Shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF)

Shelton Capital Management reduced its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 8.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 6,127 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 579 shares during the period. Shelton Capital Management’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $480,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Hemington Wealth Management lifted its position in Jefferies Financial Group by 71.8% in the 4th 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 in the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $27,000. Stephens Consulting LLC bought a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the third quarter worth $32,000. Finally, GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 158.3% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,000 after purchasing an additional 315 shares during the period. 60.88% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Jefferies Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of JEF opened at $47.23 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.57, a quick ratio of 1.07 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock has a market capitalization of $9.74 billion, a PE ratio of 15.85 and a beta of 1.29. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $60.69 and a 200-day moving average price of $68.51. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $39.28 and a fifty-two week high of $82.68.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 26th. The financial services provider reported $0.60 earnings per share (EPS) 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 analysts’ expectations of $1.93 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 10.57% and a return on equity of 7.92%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was down 8.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $0.87 earnings per share. Equities analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Jefferies Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 19th will be issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 19th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.39%. Jefferies Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 55.36%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

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.