BMO Capital Markets Lowers Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) Price Target to $42.00

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) had its price objective cut by investment analysts at BMO Capital Markets from $68.00 to $42.00 in a note issued to investors on Monday,Benzinga reports. The firm presently has a “market perform” rating on the financial services provider’s stock. BMO Capital Markets’ price objective would indicate a potential upside of 3.42% from the company’s previous close.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on JEF. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Jefferies Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Wednesday, March 11th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Jefferies Financial Group from $61.00 to $54.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Morgan Stanley cut Jefferies Financial Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $49.00 price target for the company. in a report on Monday, March 9th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Jefferies Financial Group in a research report on Monday, December 29th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their price objective on Jefferies Financial Group from $76.00 to $59.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, March 12th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, three have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $58.14.

Jefferies Financial Group Trading Up 2.7%

Shares of JEF opened at $40.61 on Monday. Jefferies Financial Group has a 52-week low of $35.53 and a 52-week high of $71.04. The stock has a market cap of $8.39 billion, a PE ratio of 14.35 and a beta of 1.52. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $51.48 and its two-hundred day moving average is $56.82. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.73.

Jefferies Financial Group (NYSE:JEF) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, January 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.83 by $0.13. The business had revenue of $2.07 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.01 billion. Jefferies Financial Group had a net margin of 6.56% and a return on equity of 7.27%. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $0.91 earnings per share. Research analysts forecast that Jefferies Financial Group will post 4.41 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Jefferies Financial Group

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Salomon & Ludwin LLC lifted its stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group by 75.0% in the 4th quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 177 shares during the last quarter. Smithfield Trust Co acquired a new stake in shares of Jefferies Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Root Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Jefferies Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Nvwm LLC acquired a new position in Jefferies Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 60.88% of the company’s stock.

Jefferies Financial Group News Roundup

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

• Positive Sentiment: Multiple reports that SMFG is preparing possible takeover plans pushed buying interest and lifted JEF shares, as a strategic bid would command a takeover premium. Japan’s SMFG explores possible takeover of Jefferies (FT)
• Positive Sentiment: Pre‑market and early session coverage highlighted a surge (reports noted moves up to double‑digit percentages premarket), which attracted momentum traders and raised daily volume well above average. Jefferies stock jumps on SMFG takeover report (Invezz)
• Neutral Sentiment: Follow‑up coverage introduced uncertainty: some outlets reported SMFG has “no immediate takeover plan,” which tempered the rally and increased intraday volatility. Report: SMFG has no immediate takeover plan (MSN)
• Neutral Sentiment: Jefferies publicly signaled it is not interested in selling, per coverage, which is important context for deal probability and helped cap upside. Jefferies gains on reports of potential Sumitomo Mitsui takeover interest (Proactive)
• Neutral Sentiment: Near‑term catalysts include Jefferies’ Q1 earnings report due imminently; previews and analyst estimates are keeping traders attentive to guidance and underwriting/investment‑banking trends. JEF Q1 earnings preview (MSN)
• Neutral Sentiment: A recent court ruling (hedge‑fund founder Weiss lost a defamation suit against Jefferies) removes one legal overhang and is marginally supportive of sentiment. Weiss loses defamation suit vs Jefferies (Bloomberg)
• Negative Sentiment: Pomerantz has launched an investor investigation into Jefferies, which could signal potential litigation and create headline risk if it develops into a class action. Pomerantz investigates Jefferies investors (GlobeNewswire)
• Negative Sentiment: BMO cut its price target on JEF sharply (from $68 to $42), reflecting lower near‑term expectations and limiting analyst upside. BMO lowers Jefferies price target (Benzinga)

About Jefferies Financial Group

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.