Victory Capital Management Inc. Increases Holdings in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. $JEF

Victory Capital Management Inc. increased its position in Jefferies Financial Group Inc. (NYSE:JEF) by 245.2% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 651,216 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after acquiring an additional 462,546 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in Jefferies Financial Group were worth $42,603,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of JEF. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new position in Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Chilton Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group in the third quarter valued at about $36,000. Rothschild Investment LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 34.7% in the third quarter. Rothschild Investment LLC now owns 741 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $48,000 after purchasing an additional 191 shares in the last quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 159.3% in the second quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 892 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $49,000 after purchasing an additional 548 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Tripletail Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $69,000. 60.88% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Jefferies Financial Group Stock Down 13.7%

Shares of NYSE:JEF opened at $38.22 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $57.47 and a 200-day simple moving average of $58.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $7.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.51 and a beta of 1.52. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. has a 1 year low of $38.17 and a 1 year high of $71.04. 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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.13. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 6.56% and a return on equity of 7.27%. The company had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.91 earnings per share. Jefferies Financial Group’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.7% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group Inc. will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current year.

Jefferies Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 27th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, February 17th were paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.2%. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, February 17th. Jefferies Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 56.54%.

Key Headlines Impacting Jefferies Financial Group

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

• Positive Sentiment: Jefferies issued a public response defending its position, saying the loan in question was non‑recourse, was diligenced by the bank, and that the Point Bonita fund acted in good faith — a statement that could limit perceived legal exposure or calm some investors. Jefferies Comments on Western Alliance Bank Lawsuit
• Neutral Sentiment: PhysicsWallah will join a Jefferies‑led investor meeting on March 12 — a routine investor relations/deal engagement that is unlikely to move JEF shares materially but shows ongoing capital‑markets activity. PhysicsWallah to Join Jefferies-Led Investor Meet on March 12
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary assessing JEF valuation after the recent share weakness highlights that analyst targets remain well above current levels — useful context for longer‑term investors but secondary to the immediate legal headlines. Assessing Jefferies Financial Group (JEF) Valuation After Recent Share Price Weakness
• Negative Sentiment: Western Alliance sued Jefferies after recording a ~$126M charge‑off tied to a loan collateralized by receivables from First Brands; the suit alleges Jefferies declined payment under a forbearance arrangement — this legal claim is the primary near‑term catalyst driving the stock decline and higher trading volume. $126M Payment Dispute Sparks Western Alliance Lawsuit Against Jefferies
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz LLP opened an investor investigation into Jefferies — a potential class‑action inquiry that can increase legal costs, create settlement risk, and sustain negative headlines even if the underlying exposure is limited. Pomerantz Investigates Jefferies Investors

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have recently issued reports on JEF shares. Zacks Research downgraded Jefferies Financial Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, December 1st. Oppenheimer lifted their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $81.00 to $97.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, December 11th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a report 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. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $78.00 price target on shares of Jefferies Financial Group and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, December 8th. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $72.71.

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.