Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) Shares Down 10.9% – Here’s Why

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) fell 10.9% on Friday . The company traded as low as $44.08 and last traded at $43.6470. 1,477,232 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 43% from the average session volume of 2,601,459 shares. The stock had previously closed at $48.96.

Key Stories Impacting Jefferies Financial Group

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

• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies’ strategic messaging about valuation discipline and a refreshed stance was highlighted by media as a constructive repositioning that could support long‑term investor confidence. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies’ equity research remains active (maintaining and updating ratings across several names such as Amadeus, Mobico, PBA and others); this underscores ongoing brokerage/wealth‑management revenue but is not an immediate driver of the stock move. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Bloomberg/Reuters reported Jefferies has roughly £100m (~$135m) exposure to Market Financial Solutions (MFS), a UK mortgage lender that entered insolvency — a direct credit hit that could pressure earnings or require reserves. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Investors have filed suits alleging losses tied to a Jefferies fund’s exposure to the collapse of First Brands; media reports indicate investor lawsuits are targeting Jefferies‑managed funds, which raises prospects of litigation costs and reputational damage. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP has opened an investor probe into Jefferies (an investor alert was issued), signaling possible securities‑litigation risk that could lead to discovery, legal expense and management distraction. Article Title

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on JEF shares. UBS Group reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, December 30th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research note on Monday, December 29th. Oppenheimer lifted their target price on shares of Jefferies Financial Group from $81.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Thursday, December 11th. Morgan Stanley set a $78.00 price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, December 8th. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, December 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $72.71.

Jefferies Financial Group Trading Down 10.5%

The business has a 50 day moving average of $59.84 and a two-hundred day moving average of $59.71. The firm has a market capitalization of $9.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.52 and a beta of 1.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.13. Jefferies Financial Group had a return on equity of 7.27% and a net margin of 6.56%.The firm had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.01 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.91 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts predict that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 EPS for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, February 27th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, February 17th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 56.54%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 75.0% during the fourth quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 177 shares in the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC bought a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Root Financial Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during 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 worth about $31,000. 60.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Company Profile

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.