Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) Declares $0.30 Quarterly Dividend

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) declared a quarterly dividend on Wednesday, March 27th, Zacks reports. Investors of record on Monday, May 20th will be paid a dividend of 0.30 per share by the financial services provider on Thursday, May 30th. This represents a $1.20 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.72%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 17th.

Jefferies Financial Group has raised its dividend by an average of 26.0% per year over the last three years. Jefferies Financial Group has a dividend payout ratio of 28.4% indicating that its dividend is sufficiently covered by earnings. Equities analysts expect Jefferies Financial Group to earn $4.31 per share next year, which means the company should continue to be able to cover its $1.20 annual dividend with an expected future payout ratio of 27.8%.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Down 4.4 %

Shares of JEF opened at $44.08 on Friday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.95, a current ratio of 0.95 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.18. Jefferies Financial Group has a 52 week low of $28.81 and a 52 week high of $47.39. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $42.08 and its 200-day moving average price is $38.37. The company has a market capitalization of $9.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 36.13 and a beta of 1.37.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, March 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.87 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.76 by $0.11. The business had revenue of $1.74 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.52 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 4.42% and a net margin of 5.90%. The company’s revenue was up 35.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.55 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group will post 3.53 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Pitcairn Co. purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $209,000. Pearl River Capital LLC acquired a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $205,000. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth $204,000. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 28.6% during the fourth quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 5,960 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $204,000 after acquiring an additional 1,324 shares in the last quarter. Finally, CIBC Asset Management Inc acquired a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $201,000. Institutional investors own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com upgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Sunday, March 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, two have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $39.67.

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.