Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Sells 40,451 Shares of Federated Hermes, Inc. $FHI

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. trimmed its stake in Federated Hermes, Inc. (NYSE:FHI) by 71.8% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,889 shares of the company’s stock after selling 40,451 shares during the period. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.’s holdings in Federated Hermes were worth $827,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of FHI. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its holdings in shares of Federated Hermes by 8.3% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 2,734 shares of the company’s stock worth $142,000 after buying an additional 210 shares during the period. MAI Capital Management raised its holdings in shares of Federated Hermes by 86.7% in the third quarter. MAI Capital Management now owns 476 shares of the company’s stock worth $25,000 after buying an additional 221 shares during the period. RiverFront Investment Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Federated Hermes by 4.7% in the fourth quarter. RiverFront Investment Group LLC now owns 5,744 shares of the company’s stock worth $299,000 after buying an additional 256 shares during the period. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its holdings in shares of Federated Hermes by 0.4% in the third quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 68,934 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,580,000 after buying an additional 272 shares during the period. Finally, Cadence Bank raised its holdings in shares of Federated Hermes by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Cadence Bank now owns 128,345 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,683,000 after buying an additional 323 shares during the period. 75.94% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Federated Hermes Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NYSE:FHI opened at $56.05 on Friday. Federated Hermes, Inc. has a 12-month low of $41.55 and a 12-month high of $59.05. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $56.22 and its 200-day simple moving average is $54.15. The company has a market capitalization of $4.25 billion, a PE ratio of 10.86, a P/E/G ratio of 1.99 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a current ratio of 3.28, a quick ratio of 2.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.

Federated Hermes (NYSE:FHI) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 30th. The company reported $1.27 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.20 by $0.07. Federated Hermes had a return on equity of 33.90% and a net margin of 21.47%.The business had revenue of $478.96 million for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $475.22 million. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.25 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 13.1% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Federated Hermes, Inc. will post 5.1 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Federated Hermes Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 8th were issued a $0.38 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, May 8th. This represents a $1.52 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is a boost from Federated Hermes’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.34. Federated Hermes’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 29.46%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

FHI has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price target on Federated Hermes from $56.00 to $53.00 and set an “underweight” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 4th. Argus upgraded Federated Hermes to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 2nd. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Federated Hermes in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reduced their price target on Federated Hermes from $56.00 to $54.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, May 6th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their price target on Federated Hermes from $58.00 to $54.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, May 4th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, four have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $54.00.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, VP Paul A. Uhlman sold 72,392 shares of Federated Hermes stock in a transaction on Thursday, March 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $56.23, for a total value of $4,070,602.16. Following the transaction, the vice president directly owned 263,987 shares in the company, valued at approximately $14,843,989.01. This trade represents a 21.52% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Also, VP Bryan M. Burke sold 4,000 shares of Federated Hermes stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 7th. The shares were sold at an average price of $54.20, for a total value of $216,800.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president owned 74,921 shares in the company, valued at $4,060,718.20. This represents a 5.07% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 4.20% of the company’s stock.

About Federated Hermes

Federated Hermes, Inc is a global investment manager that provides a range of asset management solutions to institutional and individual investors. The company offers active strategies across equity, fixed income, multi-asset, liquidity, and alternative investments. Through its suite of mutual funds, separate accounts and collective investment vehicles, Federated Hermes seeks to deliver performance-driven outcomes aligned with client objectives and risk tolerances.

In addition to traditional investment management, Federated Hermes has developed specialized capabilities in sustainability and responsible investing, integrating environmental, social and governance (ESG) research into its investment process.