Jefferies Financial Group Inc.: Form 10-Q for the period ended Feb 28, 2025
Filed with the SEC on Apr 9, 2025 and accepted by EDGAR at Apr 9, 2025, 20:19 ET.
Management's discussion and analysis
As filed, 130,160 characters, with its headings, lists and tables. Extracted from the main document; charts and exhibits are in the original on sec.gov.
Condition and Results of Operations
This report may contain or incorporate by reference certain
“forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A
of the Securities Act of 1933, Section 21E of the Securities
Exchange Act of 1934 and/or the Private Securities Litigation
Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include
statements about our future and statements that are not
historical or current facts. These forward-looking statements are
often preceded by the words “should,” “expect,” “believe,”
“intend,” “may,” “will,” “would,” “could” or similar expressions.
Forward-looking statements may contain expectations regarding
revenues, earnings, operations and other results, and may include
statements of future performance, plans and objectives. Forward-
looking statements also include statements pertaining to our
strategies for future development of our business and products.
Forward-looking statements represent only our belief regarding
future events, many of which by their nature are inherently
uncertain. It is possible that the actual results may differ, possibly
materially, from the anticipated results indicated in these
forward-looking statements. Information regarding important
factors that could cause actual results to differ, perhaps
materially, from those in our forward-looking statements is
contained in this report and other documents we file. You should
read and interpret any forward-looking statement together with
these documents, including the following:
- the description of our business and risk factors contained in
our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended
November 30, 2024 and filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (“SEC”) on January 28, 2025;
- the discussion of our analysis of financial condition and results
of operations contained in this report under the caption
“Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition
and Results of Operations” herein;
- the discussion of our risk management policies, procedures
and methodologies contained in this report under the caption
“Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition
and Results of Operations—Risk Management” herein;
- the consolidated financial statements and notes to the
consolidated financial statements contained in this report; and
- cautionary statements we make in our public documents,
reports and announcements.
Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on
which that statement is made. We undertake no obligation to
update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or
circumstances that occur after the date on which the statement
is made, except as required by applicable law.
Our business, by its nature, does not produce predictable or
necessarily recurring earnings. Our results in any given period
can be materially affected by conditions in global financial
markets, economic conditions generally and our own activities
and positions.
Consolidated Results of Operations
Overview
$ in thousands
| Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 | February 29, 2024 | % Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Net revenues .................................................... | $1,593,019 | $1,738,203 | (8.4)% |
| Non-interest expenses .................................... | 1,441,954 | 1,517,961 | (5.0)% |
| Earnings from continuing operations before income taxes ........................................ | 151,065 | 220,242 | (31.4)% |
| Income tax expense from continuing operations .......................................................... | 14,216 | 55,959 | (74.6)% |
| Net earnings from continuing operations ..... | 136,849 | 164,283 | (16.7)% |
| Net losses from discontinued operations, net of income taxes ......................................... | — | (7,891) | (100.0)% |
| Net losses attributable to noncontrolling interests ............................................................. | (6,983) | (7,438) | (6.1)% |
| Preferred stock dividends ............................... | 16,039 | 14,189 | 13.0% |
| Net earnings attributable to common shareholders ..................................................... | 127,793 | 149,641 | (14.6)% |
| Effective tax rate from continuing operations ........................................................ | 9.4% | 25.4% |
Executive Summary
Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 Versus February 29, 2024
Consolidated Results
- Net revenues were $1.59 billion, down 8.4% compared to $1.74
billion for the prior year quarter, reflecting a more challenging
environment due to uncertainties that have arisen around U.S.
policy and geopolitical events.
- Earnings from continuing operations before income taxes were
$151.1 million, down 31.4% compared to $220.2 million for the
prior year quarter. Our first quarter results reflect strength in
our overall Investment Banking advisory and underwriting
businesses as well our Equities business offset by a
meaningful decline in investment return generated by our Asset
Management business and a decline in the performance in our
Fixed Income business.
Business Results
- Investment banking net revenues from Advisory, Equity
underwriting and Debt underwriting totaling $725.7 million
were up 7.2% compared to $677.1 million for the prior year
quarter. Advisory net revenues were $397.8 million, up 17.5%
compared to $338.6 million for the prior year quarter, primarily
attributable to meaningful market share gains and an increase
in transaction levels across most sectors in the global mergers
and acquisitions markets. Total underwriting net revenues
were $327.9 million, down 3.1% compared to $338.5 million for
the prior year quarter, as strong results in debt underwriting
was offset by a slowdown in equity underwriting activity, as
overall industry opportunity in the equity market slowed
particularly in sectors where we have significant market share.
Other investment banking net revenues were negative $(25.0)
million, compared to net revenues of $49.9 million for the prior
year quarter. Other investment banking net revenues include
the net returns on our investments in our Jefferies Finance and
Berkadia joint ventures and net gains or losses on investments.
- Equities net revenues were $409.1 million, up 10.0% compared
to $371.8 million for the prior year quarter, attributable to
stronger results across several of our equities business lines.
February 2025 Form 10-Q 43
- Fixed income net revenues were $289.2 million, down 17.9%
compared to $352.5 million for the prior year quarter, as a
result of a challenging market in the current year compared to
higher confidence driving stronger activity in the prior year
quarter.
- Asset management net revenues were $191.7 million
compared to $273.4 million for the prior year quarter. Asset
management fees and revenues increased as strong
performance across multiple managed funds resulted in higher
performance fee income for the calendar year 2024 which was
realized in the first quarter of 2025. Investment return
decreased due to a challenging investment environment for a
variety of strategies, particularly those with a long equity bias,
compared to particularly strong performance across several of
these strategies in the prior year quarter.
Non-interest Expenses
- Compensation and benefits expenses was $841.1 million, a
decrease of 9.3%, compared to $926.9 million for the prior year
quarter. Compensation and benefits expense as a percentage
of Net revenues was 52.8%, compared to 53.3% for the prior
year quarter.
- Non-compensation expenses were $600.8 million, slightly
higher compared to $591.3 million for the prior year quarter.
Non-compensation expenses for the current year quarter
includes $16.3 million in charitable donations, including
$9.6 million to support Los Angeles wildfire relief efforts, as
well as a $5.7 million land donation from HomeFed. We also
had an increase in business development expenses. Other
expenses for the prior year quarter include bad debt expenses
of $27.0 million largely related to our losses associated with
the shutdown of Weiss Multi-Strategy Advisers (“Weiss”). In
addition, Non-compensation expenses for the prior year quarter
include Foursight activity. Non-compensation expenses as a
percentage of Net revenues was 37.7% compared to 34.0% for
the prior year quarter.
Headcount
- At February 28, 2025, we had 7,701 employees globally across
all of our consolidated subsidiaries within our Investment
Banking and Capital Markets and Asset Management
reportable segments, a decrease of 121 employees from our
headcount of 7,822 at November 30, 2024. Included within our
global headcount are 1,908 employees at February 28, 2025
and 2,063 employees at November 30, 2024 of our Stratos,
Tessellis, HomeFed and M Science subsidiaries.
Revenues by Source
We present our results as two reportable business segments:
Investment Banking and Capital Markets and Asset Management.
Additionally, corporate activities are fully allocated to each of
these reportable business segments.
Net revenues presented for our Investment Banking and Capital
Markets reportable segment include allocations of interest
income and interest expense as we assess the profitability of
these businesses inclusive of the net interest revenue or expense
associated with the respective activities, including the net
interest cost of allocated short- and long-term debt, which is a
function of the mix of each business’s associated assets and
liabilities and the related funding costs.
The remainder of our “Consolidated Results of Operations” is
presented on a detailed product and expense basis. Our
“Revenues by Source” is reported along the following business
lines: Investment Banking, Equities, Fixed Income and Asset
Management.
Debt valuation adjustments on derivative contracts, gains and
losses on investments held in deferred compensation plans,
foreign currency transaction gains or losses or certain other
corporate income items are not considered by management in
assessing the financial performance of our operating businesses
and are, therefore, not reported as part of our business segment
results.
$ in thousands
| Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 Amount | % of Net Revenues | February 29, 2024 Amount | % of Net Revenues | % Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Advisory ............................ | $397,780 | 25.0% | $338,567 | 19.5% | 17.5% |
| Equity underwriting .......... | 128,520 | 8.1 | 209,303 | 12.0 | (38.6) |
| Debt underwriting ............. | 199,362 | 12.5 | 129,194 | 7.4 | 54.3 |
| Other investment banking ........................ | (24,970) | (1.6) | 49,946 | 2.9 | N/M |
| Total Investment Banking ........................ | 700,692 | 44.0 | 727,010 | 41.8 | (3.6) |
| Equities .............................. | 409,058 | 25.7 | 371,800 | 21.4 | 10.0 |
| Fixed income ..................... | 289,226 | 18.2 | 352,478 | 20.3 | (17.9) |
| Total Capital Markets ...... | 698,284 | 43.9 | 724,278 | 41.7 | (3.6) |
| Total Investment Banking and Capital Markets (1) .................. | 1,398,976 | 87.9 | 1,451,288 | 83.5 | (3.6) |
| Asset management fees and revenues .............. | 88,630 | 5.6 | 59,657 | 3.4 | 48.6 |
| Investment return ............. | (5,634) | (0.4) | 117,640 | 6.8 | N/M |
| Allocated net interest (2) . | (17,221) | (1.1) | (15,012) | (0.9) | 14.7 |
| Other investments, inclusive of net interest ......................... | 125,940 | 7.9 | 111,098 | 6.4 | 13.4 |
| Total Asset Management ............... | 191,715 | 12.0 | 273,383 | 15.7 | (29.9) |
| Other ................................... | 2,328 | 0.1 | 13,532 | 0.8 | (82.8) |
| Net revenues ..................... | $1,593,019 | 100.0% | $1,738,203 | 100.0% | (8.4)% |
N/M — Not Meaningful
(1) Allocated net interest is not separately disaggregated for Investment Banking
and Capital Markets. This presentation is aligned to our Investment Banking
and Capital Markets internal performance measurement.
(2) Allocated net interest represents an allocation to Asset Management of our
long-term debt interest expense, net of interest income on our Cash and cash
equivalents and other sources of liquidity. Allocated net interest has been
disaggregated to increase transparency and to make clearer actual
Investment return. We believe that aggregating Investment return and
Allocated net interest would obscure the Investment return by including an
amount that is unique to our credit spreads, debt maturity profile, capital
structure, liquidity risks and allocation methods.
Beginning in the fourth quarter of 2024, revenues from corporate
equity derivative transactions historically included within Other
investment banking net revenues were reclassified to Equities net
revenues as the underlying business has matured and has
started to generate meaningful revenues. Prior year amounts
have been revised to conform to this reclassification change to
the current year reporting.
Investment Banking Revenues
Investment banking is composed of revenues from:
- advisory services with respect to mergers and acquisitions,
debt financing, restructurings and private capital transactions;
- underwriting services, which include debt underwriting and
placement services related to investment grade debt, high yield
bonds, leveraged loans, emerging market debt, global
structured notes, municipal debt, mortgage-backed and asset-
44 Jefferies Financial Group Inc.
backed securities; equity underwriting and placement services
related to equity offerings, preferred stock, and equity-linked
securities; and loan syndication;
- our 50% share of net earnings from our corporate lending joint
venture, Jefferies Finance;
- our 45% share of net earnings from our commercial real estate
joint venture, Berkadia (which includes commercial mortgage
origination and servicing);
- Foursight, our wholly-owned subsidiary engaged in the lending
and servicing of automobile loans (until the sale in April 2024);
- securities and loans received or acquired in connection with
our investment banking activities; and
- certain revenue-sharing agreements with SMBC primarily
associated with investment banking transactions.
Investment banking net revenues were $700.7 million, down 3.6%
compared to $727.0 million for the prior year quarter.
| Deals Completed Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 | February 29, 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Advisory transactions ................................................. | 92 | 78 |
| Public and private equity and convertible offerings | 35 | 58 |
| Public and private debt financings ............................ | 213 | 182 |
$ in billions
| Aggregate Value Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 | February 29, 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Advisory transactions ................................................. | $111.8 | $54.9 |
| Public and private equity and convertible offerings | 22.4 | 12.8 |
| Public and private debt financings ............................ | 147.2 | 107.3 |
Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 Versus February 29, 2024
Advisory net revenues were $397.8 million, up 17.5% compared
to $338.6 million for the prior year quarter, primarily attributable
to meaningful market share gains and an increase in transaction
levels across most sectors in the global mergers and
acquisitions markets.
Total underwriting net revenues were $327.9 million, down 3.1%
compared to $338.5 million for the prior year quarter, driven by
stronger debt underwriting activity and collateralized loan
origination activity. Equity underwriting net revenues decreased,
as overall industry opportunity slowed particularly in sectors
where we have significant market share.
Other investment banking net revenues were negative $(25.0)
million, compared to net revenues of $49.9 million for the prior
year quarter and include mark-to-market net losses compared to
mark-to-market net gains in the prior year quarter. Performance
from our strategic Berkadia joint venture modestly increased
while performance from our strategic Jefferies Finance joint
venture was lower than the prior year comparable period. Other
investment banking net revenues for the prior year quarter also
include Foursight revenues of $20.5 million. Foursight was sold
in April 2024.
While our investment banking backlog remains strong, the extent
and timing of its realization may be impacted by an environment
that has become increasingly more challenging due to
uncertainties that have arisen around U.S. policy and geopolitical
events. Backlog snapshots are subject to limitations as the time
frame for the realization of revenues from these expected
transactions varies and is influenced by factors we do not
control. Transactions not included in the estimate may occur, and
expected transactions may also be modified or cancelled.
Equities Net Revenues
Equities is composed of net revenues from:
- services provided to our clients from which we earn
commissions or spread revenue by executing, settling and
clearing transactions for clients;
- advisory services offered to clients;
- financing, securities lending and other prime brokerage
services offered to clients, including capital introductions and
outsourced trading;
- corporate equity derivative transactions; and
- wealth management services.
Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 Versus February 29, 2024
Equities net revenues were $409.1 million, up 10.0% compared to
$371.8 million for the prior year quarter, as stronger results in our
prime services business significantly increased over the prior
year period. Additionally, revenues from our electronic trading
and equity options businesses were also strong. These increases
were partially offset by lower revenues from our traditional U.S.
equity cash business.
Fixed Income Net Revenues
Fixed income is composed of net revenues from:
- executing transactions for clients and making markets in
securitized products, investment grade, high-yield, distressed,
emerging markets, municipal, sovereign and emerging markets
securities and loans;
- customized products and corporate hedging and foreign
currency solutions through derivative products; and
- financing and other structuring services.
Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 Versus February 29, 2024
Fixed income net revenues were $289.2 million, down 17.9%
compared to $352.5 million for the prior year quarter, as a result
of a challenging market in the current year compared to higher
confidence driving stronger activity in the prior year quarter.
Strong results from our global structured solutions and
securitized markets businesses were offset by lower results in
our distressed trading, municipal securities and emerging
markets businesses, which were strong in the prior year quarter.
Asset Management
We operate a diversified alternative asset management platform
offering institutional clients a range of investment strategies
directly and through our affiliated asset managers. We provide
certain of our affiliated asset managers access to our global
marketing and distribution platform, as well as operational
infrastructure and support. We often invest our own capital in the
strategies offered by us and associated third-party asset
managers in which we have an interest.
February 2025 Form 10-Q 45
Asset management revenues include the following:
- management and performance fees from funds and accounts
managed by us;
- revenue from affiliated asset managers where we are entitled
to portions of their revenues and/or profits, as well as earnings
on our ownership interests in our affiliated asset managers;
- investment income from our capital invested in and managed
by us and our affiliated asset managers; and
- revenues from investments held in our other investments
portfolio, including consolidated operations from real estate
development activities, foreign exchange trading and
telecommunications activities.
Asset management fees and revenues are impacted by the level
of assets under management and the performance return of
those assets, for the most part on an absolute basis, and, in
certain cases, relative to a benchmark or hurdle. These
components can be affected by financial markets, profits and
losses in the applicable investment portfolios and client capital
activity. Further, asset management fees vary with the nature of
investment management services. The terms under which clients
may terminate our investment management agreements, and the
requisite notice period for such termination, vary depending on
the nature of the investment vehicle and the liquidity of the
portfolio assets. In some instances, performance fees and
similar revenues are recognized once a year, when they become
fixed and determinable and are not probable of being
significantly reversed, typically in December. As a result, a
significant portion of our performance fees and similar revenues
generated from investment returns in a calendar year are
recognized in our following fiscal year.
$ in thousands
| Asset management fees: | Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 | February 29, 2024 | % Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Equities ................................................. | $8,394 | $2,498 | 236.0% |
| Multi-asset ............................................ | 37,414 | 26,863 | 39.3% |
| Total asset management fees .......... | 45,808 | 29,361 | 56.0% |
| Revenue from strategic affiliates (1) | 42,822 | 30,296 | 41.3% |
| Total asset management fees and revenues .......................................... | 88,630 | 59,657 | 48.6% |
| Investment return ................................ | (5,634) | 117,640 | N/M |
| Allocated net interest .......................... | (17,221) | (15,012) | 14.7% |
| Other investments ............................... | 126,128 | 111,098 | 13.5% |
| Total Asset Management .................. | $191,903 | $273,383 | (29.8)% |
(1) These amounts include our share of fees received by affiliated asset
management companies with which we have revenue and profit share
arrangements, as well as earnings on our ownership interest in affiliated asset
managers.
Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 Versus February 29, 2024
Asset management fees and revenues were $88.6 million, up
49% compared to $59.7 million for the prior year quarter, as
strong performance across multiple platforms resulted in higher
performance fee income for the calendar year 2024, which was
realized in the first quarter of 2025.
Investment return was a negative $(5.6) million, compared to
$117.6 million for the prior year quarter, with the decrease
attributable to a challenging investment environment for a variety
of strategies, particularly those with a long equity bias, and a
particularly strong performance across several of these
strategies in the prior year quarter.
Other investments net revenues were $125.9 million, up 13%
compared to $111.1 million for the prior year quarter, attributable
to net gains recognized on certain investment positions
compared to net losses recognized in the prior year quarter, as
well as realized gains on property sales at HomeFed during the
current year quarter.
Assets Under Management
Aggregate net asset values or net asset value equivalent assets
under management:
$ in millions
| February 28, 2025 | November 30, 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Net asset values of seed investments ................. | $1,876 | $1,761 |
| Net asset values of financed investments .......... | 1,031 | 1,174 |
| Net asset values of investments (1) ..................... | 2,907 | 2,935 |
| Assets under management by affiliated asset managers with revenue sharing arrangements (2) ................................................ | 24,855 | 22,515 |
| Third-party and other investments actively managed by our wholly-owned managers (3) | 2,694 | 2,596 |
| Total aggregate net asset values or net asset value equivalent assets under management . | $30,456 | $28,046 |
(1) Revenues related to the investments made by us are presented in Investment
return within the results of our asset management businesses.
(2) Revenues from our share of fees received by affiliated asset managers are
presented in Revenue from strategic affiliates within the results of our asset
management business. November 30, 2024 includes an adjustment of
$3.0 billion.
(3) We earn asset management fees as a result of the third-party investments,
which are presented in Asset management fees and revenues within the
results of our asset management business.
Assets under management are based on the net asset value or
net asset value equivalent of a fund plus unfunded capital
commitments to the fund, the net asset value equivalents of
separately managed accounts and the fair value of any invested
capital in our consolidated funds and separately managed
accounts. Assets under management is generally based on how
fee and revenues are calculated and the measure also includes
funds and separately managed accounts for which we do not
charge fees.
Our definition of assets under management is not based on any
definition contained in any of our investment management
agreements and differs from the manner in which “Regulatory
Assets Under Management” is reported to the SEC on Form ADV.
Asset Management Investments
Our asset management business makes seed and additional
strategic investments directly in alternative asset management
separately managed accounts and co-mingled funds where we
act as the asset manager or in affiliated asset managers where
we have strategic relationships and participate in the revenues or
profits of the affiliated manager.
Investments by type of asset manager:
$ in thousands
| Jefferies Financial Group Inc.; as manager: | February 28, 2025 | November 30, 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Fund investments (1) ................................................... | $203,663 | $199,248 |
| Separately managed accounts (2) ............................ | 216,999 | 177,998 |
| Total ............................................................................... | $420,662 | $377,246 |
| Strategic affiliates; as manager: | ||
| Fund investments (1) ................................................... | $1,048,253 | $944,940 |
| Separately managed accounts (2) ............................ | 407,142 | 439,043 |
| Investments in asset managers ................................. | 88,549 | 81,403 |
| Total ............................................................................... | $1,543,944 | $1,465,386 |
| Total asset management investments ................... | $1,964,606 | $1,842,632 |
46 Jefferies Financial Group Inc.
(1) Due to the level or nature of an investment in a fund, we may consolidate that
fund; and accordingly, the assets and liabilities of the fund are included in the
representative line items in our consolidated financial statements. At
February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024 $12.0 million and $11.3 million,
respectively, represent net investments in funds that have been consolidated
in our financial statements.
(2) Where we have investments in a separately managed account, the assets and
liabilities of such account are presented in our consolidated financial
statements within each respective line item.
Other
Other revenues include foreign currency transaction gains or
losses, debt valuation adjustments on derivative contracts, gains
and losses on investments held in deferred compensation plans
or certain other corporate income items that are not attributed to
business segments as management does not consider such
amounts in assessing the financial performance of our operating
businesses.
Non-interest Expenses
$ in thousands
| Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 | February 29, 2024 | % Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Compensation and benefits ........... | $841,127 | $926,871 | (9.3)% |
| Brokerage and clearing fees .......... | 109,436 | 109,670 | (0.2) |
| Underwriting costs .......................... | 17,846 | 18,484 | (3.5) |
| Technology and communications | 139,475 | 137,512 | 1.4 |
| Occupancy and equipment rental . | 30,199 | 28,153 | 7.3 |
| Business development ................... | 72,291 | 57,651 | 25.4 |
| Professional services ..................... | 72,466 | 77,844 | (6.9) |
| Depreciation and amortization ...... | 30,988 | 43,202 | (28.3) |
| Cost of sales .................................... | 41,568 | 34,671 | 19.9 |
| Other .................................................. | 86,558 | 83,903 | 3.2 |
| Total non-interest expenses ......... | $1,441,954 | $1,517,961 | (5.0)% |
Total Non-interest Expenses
Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 Versus February 29, 2024
Non-interest expenses were $1.44 billion, a decrease of 5.0%,
compared to $1.52 billion for the prior year quarter. The decrease
is primarily attributable to lower compensation expense on lower
Net revenues activity.
Compensation and Benefits
Compensation and benefits expense consists of salaries,
benefits, commissions, annual cash compensation and share-
based awards and the amortization of share-based and cash
compensation awards to employees.
Cash and share-based awards and a portion of cash awards
granted to employees as part of year end compensation generally
contain provisions such that employees who terminate their
employment or are terminated without cause may continue to
vest in their awards, so long as those awards are not forfeited as
a result of other forfeiture provisions (primarily non-compete
clauses) of those awards. Accordingly, the compensation
expense for a portion of awards granted at year end as part of
annual compensation is recorded during the year of the award.
Compensation and benefits expense includes amortization
expense associated with these awards to the extent vesting is
contingent on future service. In addition, certain awards to our
Chief Executive Officer and our President contain performance
conditions and the awards are amortized over their service
periods.
Compensation and benefits expense was $841.1 million
compared to $926.9 million for the prior year quarter. A
significant portion of our compensation expense is highly
variable with net revenues. Compensation and benefits expense
as a percentage of Net revenues was 52.8% compared with
53.3% for the prior year quarter.
Compensation expense related to the amortization of share- and
cash-based awards amounted to $150.7 million compared to
$128.1 million for the prior year quarter.
At February 28, 2025, we had 7,701 employees globally across all
of our consolidated subsidiaries within our Investment Banking
and Capital Markets and Asset Management reportable
segments, a decrease of 121 employees from our headcount of
7,822 at November 30, 2024. Included within our global
headcount are 1,908 employees at February 28, 2025 and 2,063
employees at November 30, 2024 of our Stratos, Tessellis,
HomeFed, and M Science subsidiaries.
Non-interest Expenses (Excluding Compensation and Benefits)
Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 Versus February 29, 2024
Non-compensation expenses were $600.8 million, slightly higher
compared to $591.3 million for the prior year quarter. Non-
compensation expenses for the current year quarter includes
$16.3 million in charitable donations, including $9.6 million to
support Los Angeles wildfire relief efforts, as well as a
$5.7 million land donation from HomeFed. We also had an
increase business development expenses. Other expenses for
the prior year quarter include bad debt expenses of $27.0 million
largely related to our losses associated with the shutdown of
Weiss. In addition, Non-compensation expenses for the prior year
quarter include Foursight activity. Non-compensation expenses
as a percentage of Net revenues was 37.7% compared to 34.0%
for the prior year quarter.
Income Taxes
For the three months ended February 28, 2025 and February 29,
2024, the provision for income taxes on continuing operations
was $14.2 million and $56.0 million, respectively, equating to an
effective tax rate of 9.4%, and 25.4%, respectively. The lower rate
was primarily driven by the partial resolution of certain state and
local tax matters.
Accounting Developments
There are no accounting standard updates, except as discussed
in Note 3, Accounting Developments in our consolidated financial
statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q which
we have either determined are applicable or expected to have a
material impact on our consolidated financial statements.
Critical Accounting Estimates
Our consolidated financial statements are prepared in conformity
with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“U.S. GAAP”),
which requires management to make estimates and
assumptions that affect the amounts reported in our
consolidated financial statements and related notes. Actual
results can and may differ from estimates. These differences
could be material to our consolidated financial statements.
February 2025 Form 10-Q 47
We believe our application of U.S. GAAP and the associated
estimates are reasonable. Our accounting estimates are
reevaluated, and adjustments are made when facts and
circumstances dictate a change. Historically, we have found our
application of accounting policies to be appropriate, and actual
results have not differed materially from those determined using
necessary estimates.
For further discussions of the following significant accounting
policies and other significant accounting policies, refer to Note 2,
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies, in our consolidated
financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of our Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the year ended November 30, 2024.
Valuation of Financial Instruments
Financial instruments owned and Financial instruments sold, not
yet purchased are recorded at fair value. The fair value of a
financial instrument is the amount that would be received to sell
an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction
between market participants at the measurement date (the exit
price). Unrealized gains or losses are generally recognized in
Principal transactions revenues.
Fair Value Hierarchy – In determining fair value, we maximize the
use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable
inputs by requiring that observable inputs be used when
available. Observable inputs are inputs that market participants
would use in pricing the asset or liability based on market data
obtained from independent sources. Unobservable inputs reflect
our assumptions that market participants would use in pricing
the asset or liability developed based on the best information
available in the circumstances. We apply a hierarchy to
categorize our fair value measurements broken down into three
levels based on the transparency of inputs, where Level 1 uses
observable prices in active markets and Level 3 uses valuation
techniques that incorporate significant unobservable inputs.
Greater use of management judgment is required in determining
fair value when inputs are less observable or unobservable in the
marketplace, such as when the volume or level of trading activity
for a financial instrument has decreased and when certain
factors suggest that observed transactions may not be reflective
of orderly market transactions. Judgment must be applied in
determining the appropriateness of available prices, particularly
in assessing whether available data reflects current prices and/or
reflects the results of recent market transactions. Prices or
quotes are weighed when estimating fair value with greater
reliability placed on information from transactions that are
considered to be representative of orderly market transactions.
Fair value is a market-based measure; therefore, when market
observable inputs are not available, our judgment is applied to
reflect those judgments that a market participant would use in
valuing the same asset or liability. The availability of observable
inputs can vary for different products. We use prices and inputs
that are current as of the measurement date even in periods of
market disruption or illiquidity. The valuation of financial
instruments categorized within Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy
involves the greatest extent of management judgment. (Refer to
Note 2, Summary of Significant Accounting Policies, in our
consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of
our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended November 30,
2024 and Note 6, Fair Value Disclosures in our consolidated
financial statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form
10-Q for further information on the definitions of fair value, Level
1, Level 2 and Level 3 and related valuation techniques.)
For information on the composition of our Financial instruments
owned and Financial instruments sold, not yet purchased
recorded at fair value and the composition of activity of our Level
3 assets and Level 3 liabilities, refer to Note 6, Fair Value
Disclosures in our consolidated financial statements included in
this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
Controls Over the Valuation Process for Financial Instruments –
Our Independent Price Verification Group, independent of the
trading function, plays an important role in determining that our
financial instruments are appropriately valued and that fair value
measurements are reliable. This is particularly important where
prices or valuations that require inputs are less observable. In the
event that observable inputs are not available, the control
processes are designed to assure that the valuation approach
utilized is appropriate and consistently applied and that the
assumptions are reasonable. Where a pricing model is used to
determine fair value, these control processes include reviews of
the pricing model’s theoretical soundness and appropriateness
by risk management personnel with relevant expertise who are
independent from the trading desks. In addition, recently
executed comparable transactions and other observable market
data are considered for purposes of validating assumptions
underlying the model.
Income Taxes
Significant judgment is required in estimating our provision for
income taxes. In determining the provision for income taxes, we
must make judgments and interpretations about how to apply
inherently complex tax laws to numerous transactions and
business events. In addition, we must make estimates about the
amount, timing and geographic mix of future taxable income,
which includes various tax planning strategies to utilize tax
attributes and deferred tax assets before they expire.
We record a valuation allowance to reduce our net deferred tax
asset to the amount that is more likely than not to be realized. We
are required to consider all available evidence, both positive and
negative, and to weigh the evidence when determining whether a
valuation allowance is required and the amount of such valuation
allowance. Generally, greater weight is required to be placed on
objectively verifiable evidence when making this assessment, in
particular on recent historical operating results.
We also record reserves for unrecognized tax benefits based on
our assessment of the probability of successfully sustaining tax
filing positions. Management exercises significant judgment
when assessing the probability of successfully sustaining tax
filing positions, and in determining whether a contingent tax
liability should be recorded and if so, estimating the amount. If
our tax filing positions are successfully challenged, payments
could be required that are in excess of reserved amounts or we
may be required to reduce the carrying amount of our net
deferred tax asset, either of which could be significant to our
financial condition or results of operations.
Impairment of Equity Method Investments
We evaluate equity method investments for impairment when
operating losses or other factors may indicate a decrease in
value which is other than temporary. We consider a variety of
factors including economic conditions nationally and in an
investment’s geographic area of operation, adverse changes in
the industry in which an investment operates, declines in
business prospects, deterioration in earnings, increasing costs of
operations and other relevant factors specific to the
investee. Whenever we believe conditions or events indicate that
one of these investments might be significantly impaired, we
generally obtain from such investee updated cash flow
projections and obtain other relevant information related to
48 Jefferies Financial Group Inc.
assessing the overall valuation of the investee. Utilizing this
information, we assess whether the investment is considered to
be other-than-temporarily impaired. To the extent an investment
is deemed to be other-than-temporarily impaired, an impairment
charge is recognized for the amount, if any, by which the
investment’s book value exceeds our estimate of the
investment’s fair value.
Goodwill
At February 28, 2025, goodwill of $1.82 billion represents 2.6% of
total assets. The nature and accounting for goodwill is discussed
in Note 2, Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in our
consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of
our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended November 30,
2024 and Note 13, Goodwill and Intangible Assets in our
consolidated financial statements included in this Quarterly
Report on Form 10-Q. Goodwill must be allocated to reporting
units and tested for impairment at least annually, or when
circumstances or events make it more likely than not that an
impairment occurred. Goodwill is tested by comparing the
estimated fair value of each reporting unit with its carrying value.
Our annual goodwill impairment testing date for a substantial
portion of our reporting units is August 1 and November 30 for
other identified reporting units. The results of our annual tests
did not indicate any goodwill impairment.
We use allocated tangible equity plus allocated goodwill and
intangible assets for the carrying amount of each reporting unit.
The amount of tangible equity allocated to a reporting unit is
based on our cash capital model deployed in managing our
businesses, which seeks to approximate the capital a business
would require if it were operating independently. For further
information on our Cash Capital Policy, refer to the Liquidity,
Financial Condition and Capital Resources section herein.
Intangible assets are allocated to a reporting unit based on either
specifically identifying a particular intangible asset as pertaining
to a reporting unit or, if shared among reporting units, based on
an assessment of the reporting unit’s benefit from the intangible
asset in order to generate results.
Estimating the fair value of a reporting unit requires management
judgment and often involves the use of estimates and
assumptions that could have a significant effect on whether or
not an impairment charge is recorded and the magnitude of such
a charge. Estimated fair values for our reporting units utilize
market valuation methods that incorporate price-to-earnings and
price-to-book multiples of comparable public companies and/or
projected cash flows. Under the market valuation approach, the
key assumptions are the selected multiples and our internally
developed projections of future profitability, growth and return on
equity for each reporting unit. The weight assigned to the
multiples requires judgment in qualitatively and quantitatively
evaluating the size, profitability and the nature of the business
activities of the reporting units as compared to the comparable
publicly-traded companies. The valuation methodology for our
reporting units is sensitive to management’s forecasts of future
profitability, which are a significant component of the valuation
and come with a level of uncertainty regarding trading volumes
and capital market transaction levels. In addition, as the fair
values determined under the market valuation approach
represent a noncontrolling interest, we apply a control premium
to arrive at the estimate fair value of each reporting unit on a
controlling basis.
Carrying values of goodwill by reporting unit:
$ in millions
| February 28, 2025 | November 30, 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Investment banking .......................................................... | $700.1 | $700.7 |
| Equities and wealth management .................................. | 255.2 | 255.4 |
| Fixed income ..................................................................... | 576.5 | 576.9 |
| Asset management .......................................................... | 143.0 | 143.0 |
| Other investments ............................................................ | 149.8 | 151.9 |
| Total .................................................................................... | $1,824.6 | $1,827.9 |
Liquidity, Financial Condition and Capital Resources
Our CFO and Global Treasurer are responsible for developing and
implementing our liquidity, funding and capital management
strategies. These policies are determined by the nature and
needs of our day-to-day business operations, business
opportunities, regulatory obligations, and liquidity requirements.
Our actual levels of capital, total assets and financial leverage are
a function of a number of factors, including asset composition,
business initiatives and opportunities, regulatory requirements
and cost and availability of both long term and short-term
funding. We have historically maintained a balance sheet
consisting of a large portion of our total assets in cash and liquid
marketable securities. The liquid nature of these assets provides
us with flexibility in financing and managing our business.
We also own a legacy portfolio of businesses and investments
that are reflected as consolidated subsidiaries, equity
investments or securities. Over the most recent years, we
completed several critical steps to substantially liquidate our
legacy Other investments portfolio of businesses, including the
sales of Foursight in April 2024 and the wholesale operations of
OpNet in August 2024.
In keeping with our strategy of returning excess liquidity to
shareholders, during the three months ended February 28, 2025,
we returned an aggregate of $149.0 million to shareholders
primarily in the form of $92.7 million in cash dividends and the
repurchases of 696,207 common shares for a total of $56.3
million at a weighted average price of $80.89 per share in
connection with the net share settlement for tax purposes of
stock awards under our equity compensation plans.
We maintain modest leverage to support our investment grade
ratings. The growth of our balance sheet is supported by our
equity and we have quantitative metrics in place to monitor
leverage and double leverage. Our capital plan is robust, in order
to sustain our operating model through stressed conditions. We
maintain adequate financial resources to support business
activities in both normal and stressed market conditions,
including a buffer in excess of our regulatory, or other internal or
external, requirements. Our access to funding and liquidity is
stable and efficient to ensure that there is sufficient liquidity to
meet our financial obligations in normal and stressed market
conditions.
Our Balance Sheet
A business unit level balance sheet and cash capital analysis are
prepared and reviewed with senior management on a weekly
basis. As a part of this balance sheet review process, capital is
allocated to all assets and gross balance sheet limits are
adjusted, as necessary. This process ensures that the allocation
of capital and costs of capital are incorporated into business
decisions. The goals of this process are to protect the firm’s
platform, enable our businesses to remain competitive, maintain
the ability to manage capital proactively and hold businesses
accountable for both balance sheet and capital usage.
February 2025 Form 10-Q 49
We actively monitor and evaluate our financial condition and the
composition of our assets and liabilities. We continually monitor
our overall securities inventory, including the inventory turnover
rate, which confirms the liquidity of our overall assets. A
significant portion of our financial instruments are valued on a
daily basis and we monitor and employ balance sheet limits for
our various businesses.
$ in millions
| February 28, 2025 | November 30, 2024 | % Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total assets ..................................... | $70,218.9 | $64,360.3 | 9.1% |
| Cash and cash equivalents ............ | 11,176.3 | 12,153.4 | (8.0) |
| Cash and securities segregated and on deposit for regulatory purposes or deposited with clearing and depository organizations .............................. | 1,665.9 | 1,132.6 | 47.1 |
| Financial instruments owned ........ | 26,087.3 | 24,138.3 | 8.1 |
| Financial instruments sold, not yet purchased ............................. | 13,997.2 | 11,007.3 | 27.2 |
| Total Level 3 assets ........................ | 781.4 | 734.2 | 6.4 |
| Securities borrowed ........................ | $8,402.2 | $7,213.4 | 16.5% |
| Securities purchased under agreements to resell .................. | 8,125.2 | 6,179.7 | 31.5 |
| Total securities borrowed and securities purchased under agreements to resell ................. | $16,527.4 | $13,393.1 | 23.4% |
| Securities loaned ............................. | $2,501.6 | $2,540.9 | (1.5)% |
| Securities sold under agreements to repurchase ............................. | 13,664.3 | 12,337.9 | 10.8 |
| Total securities loaned and securities sold under agreements to repurchase .................................. | $16,165.9 | $14,878.8 | 8.7% |
Total assets at February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024 were
$70.22 billion and $64.36 billion, respectively, an increase of
9.1%. During the three months ended February 28, 2025, average
total assets were approximately 11.0% higher than total assets at
February 28, 2025.
Our total Financial instruments owned inventory was $26.09
billion and $24.14 billion at February 28, 2025 and November 30,
2024, respectively. During the three months ended February 28,
2025, our total Financial instruments owned increased primarily
due to increases in corporate debt and equity securities, partially
offset by a decrease in U.S. government and agency securities.
Financial instruments sold, not yet purchased inventory was
$14.00 billion at February 28, 2025, an increase of 27.2% from
$11.01 billion at November 30, 2024, with the increase primarily
driven by increases in corporate debt and equity securities. Our
overall net inventory position was $12.09 billion and $13.13
billion at February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024, respectively,
with the decrease primarily due to reductions in corporate equity
securities, U.S. government and agency securities, and sovereign
obligations.
Level 3 assets:
$ in millions
| February 28, 2025 | Percent | November 30, 2024 | Percent | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Investment Banking ............ | $150.3 | 19.2% | $146.7 | 20.0% |
| Equities and Fixed Income . | 380.6 | 48.7 | 312.2 | 42.5 |
| Asset Management (1) ....... | 231.2 | 29.6 | 256.2 | 34.9 |
| Other ...................................... | 19.3 | 2.5 | 19.1 | 2.6 |
| Total ...................................... | $781.4 | 100.0% | $734.2 | 100.0% |
(1) At February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024, $189.4 million and $218.3
million, respectively, are attributed to Other investments within our Asset
Management reportable segment.
Securities financing assets and liabilities include financing for
our financial instruments trading activity, matched book
transactions and mortgage finance transactions. Matched book
transactions accommodate customers, as well as obtain
securities for the settlement and financing of inventory positions.
Our average month end balance of total reverse repos and stock
borrows during three months ended February 28, 2025 was 10.4%
higher than the balance at November 30, 2024. Our average
month end balance of total repos and stock loans during three
months ended February 28, 2025 was 29.4% higher than the
balance at November 30, 2024.
Select information related to repurchase agreements:
$ in millions
| Securities Purchased Under Agreements to Resell: | Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 | Year Ended November 30, 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Period end ....................................................... | $8,125 | $6,180 |
| Month end average ........................................ | 9,217 | 8,910 |
| Maximum month end ..................................... | 10,681 | 10,978 |
| Securities Sold Under Agreements to Repurchase: | ||
| Period end ....................................................... | $13,664 | $12,338 |
| Month end average ........................................ | 17,632 | 15,197 |
| Maximum month end ..................................... | 19,785 | 20,971 |
Fluctuations in the balance of our repurchase agreements from
period to period and intraperiod are dependent on business
activity in those periods. Additionally, the fluctuations in the
balances of our securities purchased under agreements to resell
are influenced in any given period by our clients’ balances and
our clients’ desires to execute collateralized financing
arrangements via the repurchase market or via other financing
products. Average balances and period end balances will
fluctuate based on market and liquidity conditions and we
consider the fluctuations intraperiod to be typical for the
repurchase market.
Leverage Ratios:
$ in millions
| February 28, 2025 | November 30, 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets .................................................................. | $70,219 | $64,360 |
| Total equity ................................................................... | $10,268 | $10,225 |
| Total shareholders’ equity .......................................... | $10,204 | $10,157 |
| Deduct: Goodwill and intangible assets .................... | (2,038) | (2,054) |
| Tangible shareholders’ equity ................................... | $8,166 | $8,103 |
| Leverage ratio (1) ......................................................... | 6.8 | 6.3 |
| Tangible gross leverage ratio (2) ............................... | 8.3 | 7.7 |
(1) Leverage ratio equals total assets divided by total equity.
(2) Tangible gross leverage ratio (a non-GAAP financial measure) equals total
assets less goodwill and identifiable intangible assets divided by tangible
shareholders’ equity. The tangible gross leverage ratio is used by rating
agencies in assessing our leverage ratio.
Liquidity Management
The key objectives of the liquidity management framework are to
support the successful execution of our business strategies
while ensuring sufficient liquidity through the business cycle and
during periods of financial and idiosyncratic distress. Our liquidity
management policies are designed to mitigate the potential risk
that we may be unable to access adequate financing to service
our financial obligations without material franchise or business
impact.
50 Jefferies Financial Group Inc.
The principal elements of our liquidity management framework
are our Cash Capital Policy, our assessment of Modeled Liquidity
Outflow (“MLO”) and our Contingency Funding Plan (“CFP”).
Liquidity Management Framework. Our Liquidity Management
Framework is based on a model of a potential liquidity
contraction over a one-year time period. This incorporates
potential cash outflows during a market or our idiosyncratic
liquidity stress event, including, but not limited to, the following:
- Repayment of all unsecured debt maturing within one year and
no incremental unsecured debt issuance;
- Maturity rolloff of outstanding letters of credit with no further
issuance and replacement with cash collateral;
- Higher margin requirements than currently exist on assets on
securities financing activity, including repurchase agreements
and other secured funding including central counterparty
clearinghouses;
- Liquidity outflows related to possible credit downgrade;
- Lower availability of secured funding;
- Client cash withdrawals;
- The anticipated funding of outstanding investment and loan
commitments; and
- Certain accrued expenses and other liabilities and fixed costs.
Cash Capital Policy. We maintain a cash capital model that
measures long-term funding sources against requirements.
Sources of cash capital include our equity, mezzanine equity and
the noncurrent portion of long-term borrowings. Uses of cash
capital include the following:
- Illiquid assets such as equipment, goodwill, net intangible
assets, exchange memberships, deferred tax assets and
certain investments;
- A portion of securities inventory and other assets not expected
to be financed on a secured basis in a credit stressed
environment (i.e., margin requirements); and
- Drawdowns of unfunded commitments.
To ensure that we do not need to liquidate inventory in the event
of a funding stress, we seek to maintain surplus cash capital. Our
total long-term capital of $21.99 billion at February 28, 2025
exceeded our cash capital requirements.
MLO. Our businesses are diverse, and our liquidity needs are
determined by many factors, including market movements,
collateral requirements and client commitments, all of which can
change dramatically in a difficult funding environment. During a
liquidity stress, credit-sensitive funding, including unsecured debt
and some types of secured financing agreements, may be
unavailable, and the terms (e.g., interest rates, collateral
provisions and tenor) or availability of other types of secured
financing may change. As a result of our policy to ensure we have
sufficient funds to cover what we estimate may be needed in a
liquidity stress, we hold more cash and unencumbered securities
and have greater long-term debt balances than our businesses
would otherwise require. As part of this estimation process, we
calculate an MLO that could be experienced in a liquidity stress.
MLO is based on a scenario that includes both a market-wide
stress and firm-specific stress, characterized by some or all of
the following elements:
- Global recession, default by a medium-sized sovereign, low
consumer and corporate confidence, and general financial
instability.
- Severely challenged market environment with material declines
in equity markets and widening of credit spreads.
- Damaging follow-on impacts to financial institutions leading to
the failure of a large bank.
- A firm-specific crisis potentially triggered by material losses,
reputational damage, litigation, executive departure, and/or a
ratings downgrade.
The following are the critical modeling parameters of the MLO:
- Liquidity needs over a 30-day scenario.
- A two-notch downgrade of our long-term senior unsecured
credit ratings.
- No support from government funding facilities.
- A combination of contractual outflows, such as upcoming
maturities of unsecured debt, and contingent outflows (e.g.,
actions though not contractually required, we may deem
necessary in a crisis). We assume that most contingent
outflows will occur within the initial days and weeks of a
stress.
- No diversification benefit across liquidity risks. We assume
that liquidity risks are additive.
The calculation of our MLO under the above stresses and
modeling parameters considers the following potential
contractual and contingent cash and collateral outflows:
- All upcoming maturities of unsecured long-term debt,
promissory notes and other unsecured funding products
assuming we will be unable to issue new unsecured debt or
rollover any maturing debt.
- Repurchases of our outstanding long-term debt in the ordinary
course of business as a market maker.
- A portion of upcoming contractual maturities of secured
funding activity due to either the inability to refinance or the
ability to refinance only at wider haircuts (i.e., on terms which
require us to post additional collateral). Our assumptions
reflect, among other factors, the quality of the underlying
collateral and counterparty concentration.
- Collateral postings to counterparties due to adverse changes in
the value of our over-the-counter (“OTC”) derivatives and other
outflows due to trade terminations, collateral substitutions,
collateral disputes, collateral calls or termination payments
required by a two-notch downgrade in our credit ratings.
- Variation margin postings required due to adverse changes in
the value of our outstanding exchange-traded derivatives and
any increase in initial margin and guarantee fund requirements
by derivative clearing houses.
- Liquidity outflows associated with our prime services business,
including withdrawals of customer credit balances, and a
reduction in customer short positions.
- Liquidity outflows to clearing banks to ensure timely
settlements of cash and securities transactions.
- Draws on our unfunded commitments considering, among
other things, the type of commitment and counterparty.
February 2025 Form 10-Q 51
- Other upcoming large cash outflows, such as employee
compensation, tax and dividend payments, with no expectation
of future dividends from any subsidiaries.
Based on the sources and uses of liquidity calculated under the
MLO scenarios, we determine, based on a calculated surplus or
deficit, additional long-term funding that may be needed versus
funding through the repurchase financing market and consider
any adjustments that may be necessary to our inventory balances
and cash holdings. At February 28, 2025, we had sufficient
excess liquidity to meet all contingent cash outflows detailed in
the MLO for at least 30 days without balance sheet reduction. We
regularly refine our model to reflect changes in market or
economic conditions and our business mix.
CFP. Our CFP ensures the ability to access adequate liquid
financial resources to meet liquidity shortfalls that may arise in
emergency situations. The CFP triggers the following actions:
- Sets out the governance for managing liquidity during a
liquidity crisis;
- Identifies key liquidity and capital early warning indicators that
will help guide the response to the liquidity crisis;
- Identifies the actions and escalation procedures should we
experience a liquidity crisis including coordination amongst
senior management and the Board of Directors;
- Sets out the sources of funding available during a liquidity
crisis;
- Sets out the communication plan during a liquidity crisis for
key external stakeholders including regulators, relationship
banks, rating agencies and funding counterparties; and
- Sets out an action plan to source additional funding.
Sources of Liquidity
Financial instruments that are cash and cash equivalents or are
deemed by management to be generally readily convertible into
cash, marginable or accessible for liquidity purposes within a
relatively short period of time:
$ in thousands
| Cash and cash equivalents: | February 28, 2025 | Average Balance Quarter Ended February 28, 2025 (1) | November 30, 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cash in banks ............................................. | $3,659,139 | $4,874,599 | $3,925,535 |
| Money market investments (2) ............... | 7,517,204 | 5,443,156 | 8,227,879 |
| Total cash and cash equivalents ............ | 11,176,343 | 10,317,755 | 12,153,414 |
| Other sources of liquidity: | |||
| Debt securities owned and securities purchased under agreements to resell (3) ................................................ | 1,564,664 | 1,659,926 | 1,287,564 |
| Other (4) ...................................................... | 793,674 | 822,024 | 573,042 |
| Total other sources ................................... | 2,358,338 | 2,481,950 | 1,860,606 |
| Total cash and cash equivalents and other liquidity sources ....................... | $13,534,681 | $12,799,705 | $14,014,020 |
| Total cash and cash equivalents and other liquidity sources as % of Total assets .................................................... | 19.3% | 21.8% | |
| Total cash and cash equivalents and other liquidity sources as % of Total assets less goodwill and intangible assets .................................................... | 19.9% | 22.5% |
(1) Average balances are calculated based on weekly balances.
(2) At February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024, $7.50 billion and $8.21 billion,
respectively, was invested in U.S. government money funds that invest
primarily in cash, securities issued by the U.S. government and U.S.
government-sponsored entities, and repurchase agreements that are fully
collateralized by cash or government securities. The remaining balances at
February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024 are primarily invested in AAA-rated
prime money funds. The average balance of U.S. government money funds for
the quarter ended February 28, 2025 was $5.43 billion.
(3) Consists of high-quality sovereign government securities and reverse
repurchase agreements collateralized by U.S. government securities and other
high quality sovereign government securities; deposits with a central bank
within the European Economic Area, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia,
Japan, Switzerland or the U.S.; and securities issued by a designated
multilateral development bank and reverse repurchase agreements with
underlying collateral composed of these securities.
(4) Other includes unencumbered inventory representing an estimate of the
amount of additional secured financing that could be reasonably expected to
be obtained from our Financial instruments owned that are currently not
pledged after considering reasonable financing haircuts.
In addition to the cash balances and liquidity pool presented
above, the majority of financial instruments (both long and short)
in our trading accounts are actively traded and readily
marketable. At February 28, 2025, we had the ability to readily
obtain repurchase financing for 76.3% of our inventory at haircuts
of 10% or less, which reflects the liquidity of our inventory. In
addition, as a matter of our policy, all of these assets have
internal capital assessed, which is in addition to the funding
haircuts provided in the securities finance markets. Additionally,
certain of our Financial instruments owned primarily consisting
of loans and investments are predominantly funded by long term
capital. Under our cash capital policy, we model capital allocation
levels that are more stringent than the haircuts used in the
market for secured funding; and we maintain surplus capital at
these more stringent levels. We continually assess the liquidity of
our inventory based on the level at which we could obtain
financing in the marketplace for a given asset. Assets are
considered to be liquid if financing can be obtained in the
repurchase market or the securities lending market at collateral
haircut levels of 10% or less.
Financial instruments by asset class that we consider to be of a
liquid nature and the amount of such assets that have not been
pledged as collateral:
$ in thousands
| February 28, 2025 Liquid Financial Instruments | Unencumbered Liquid Financial Instruments (2) | November 30, 2024 Liquid Financial Instruments | Unencumbered Liquid Financial Instruments (2) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corporate equity securities ............. | $6,329,853 | $833,930 | $5,280,920 | $781,490 |
| Corporate debt securities ............. | 6,447,986 | 230,073 | 5,179,229 | 339,500 |
| U.S. government, agency and municipal securities ............. | 2,982,898 | 133,238 | 4,061,773 | 75,911 |
| Other sovereign obligations .......... | 1,609,154 | 1,244,200 | 1,361,762 | 1,044,630 |
| Agency mortgage- backed securities (1) ....... | 2,376,649 | — | 2,695,282 | — |
| Loans and other receivables .......... | 165,896 | — | 978 | — |
| Total ........................... | $19,912,436 | $2,441,441 | $18,579,944 | $2,241,531 |
(1) Consists solely of agency mortgage-backed securities issued by the Federal
Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (“Freddie Mac”), the Federal National
Mortgage Association (“Fannie Mae”) and the Government National Mortgage
Association (“Ginnie Mae”).
(2) Unencumbered liquid balances represent assets that can be sold or used as
collateral for a loan but have not been.
52 Jefferies Financial Group Inc.
In addition to being able to be readily financed at reasonable
haircut levels, we estimate that each of the individual securities
within each asset class above could be sold into the market and
converted into cash within three business days under normal
market conditions, assuming that the entire portfolio of a given
asset class was not simultaneously liquidated. There are no
restrictions on the unencumbered liquid securities, nor have they
been pledged as collateral.
Sources of Funding and Capital Resources
Our assets are funded by equity capital, senior debt, securities
loaned, securities sold under agreements to repurchase,
customer free credit balances, bank loans and other payables.
Secured Financing
We rely principally on readily available secured funding to finance
our inventory of financial instruments owned and financial
instruments sold. Our ability to support increases in total assets
is largely a function of our ability to obtain short- and
intermediate-term secured funding, primarily through securities
financing transactions. We finance a portion of our long inventory
and cover some of our short inventory by pledging and borrowing
securities in the form of repurchase or reverse repurchase
agreements (collectively “repos”), respectively. For the three
months ended February 28, 2025, an average of approximately
52.8% of our cash and noncash repurchase financing activities
used collateral that was considered eligible collateral by central
clearing corporations. Central clearing corporations are situated
between participating members who borrow cash and lend
securities (or vice versa); accordingly, repo participants contract
with the central clearing corporation and not one another
individually. Therefore, counterparty credit risk is borne by the
central clearing corporation which mitigates the risk through
initial margin demands and variation margin calls from repo
participants. The comparatively large proportion of our total repo
activity that is eligible for central clearing reflects the high quality
and liquid composition of the inventory we carry in our trading
books. For those asset classes not eligible for central clearing
house financing, we seek to execute our bi-lateral financings on
an extended term basis and the tenor of our repurchase and
reverse repurchase agreements generally exceeds the expected
holding period of the assets we are financing. The weighted
average maturity of cash and noncash repurchase agreements
for non-clearing corporation eligible funded inventory is
approximately six months at February 28, 2025.
Our ability to finance our inventory via central clearinghouses and
bi-lateral arrangements is augmented by our ability to draw bank
loans on an uncommitted basis under our various banking
arrangements. At February 28, 2025, short-term borrowings,
which must be repaid within one year or less include bank loans,
overdrafts and borrowings under revolving credit facilities.
Letters of credit are used in the normal course of business
mostly to satisfy various collateral requirements in favor of
exchanges in lieu of depositing cash or securities. Average daily
short-term borrowings outstanding were $678.2 million for the
three months ended February 28, 2025.
At February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024, our borrowings
under bank loans in Short-term borrowings were $308.8 million
and $414.5 million, respectively. Our borrowings include credit
facilities that contain certain covenants that, among other things,
require us to maintain a specified level of tangible net worth,
require a minimum regulatory net capital requirement for our U.S.
broker-dealer, Jefferies LLC, and impose certain restrictions on
the future indebtedness of certain of our subsidiaries that are
borrowers. Interest is based on rates at spreads over the federal
funds rate or other adjusted rates, as defined in the various credit
agreements, or at a rate as agreed between the bank and us in
reference to the bank’s cost of funding. At February 28, 2025, we
were in compliance with all covenants under these credit
facilities.
In addition to the above financing arrangements, we issue notes
backed by eligible collateral under master repurchase
agreements, which provides an additional financing source for
our inventory (our “repurchase agreement financing program”).
The notes issued under the program are presented within Other
secured financings. At February 28, 2025, the outstanding notes
totaled $2.11 billion, bear interest at a spread over the Secured
Overnight Funding Rate (“SOFR”) or the Euro Short-Term Rate
(“ESTER”) and mature from March 2025 to October 2026.
Total Long-Term Capital
At February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024, we had total long-
term capital of $21.99 billion and $21.66 billion, respectively,
resulting in a long-term debt to equity capital ratio of 1.14:1 and
1.12:1, respectively. Refer to “Equity Capital” herein for further
information on our change in total equity.
$ in thousands
| February 28, 2025 | November 30, 2024 | |
|---|---|---|
| Unsecured Long-Term Debt (1) .................................. | $11,725,988 | $11,430,610 |
| Total Mezzanine Equity ............................................... | 406 | 406 |
| Total Equity ................................................................... | 10,268,439 | 10,224,987 |
| Total Long-Term Capital ............................................ | $21,994,833 | $21,656,003 |
(1) The amounts at February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024 exclude our
secured long-term debt. The amount at November 30, 2024 excludes
$8.5 million of our 5.500% Callable Note as the note matured on February 22,
2025, $5.4 million of our 6.000% Callable Note as the note matures on June
16, 2025, $6.2 million of our 4.500% Callable Note as the note matures on July
22, 2025, and $500.0 million of our 5.100% Callable Note as the note matures
on September 15, 2025. The amount at February 28, 2025 excludes
$6.2 million and $499.8 million of our Callable Notes as the notes mature on
July 22, 2025 and September 15, 2025, respectively, and $350 million of our
SMBC Revolver as the revolver matures on November 17, 2025. The amounts
at February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024 also exclude $189.8 million and
$157.6 million, respectively, of structured notes as the notes mature within
one year.
Long-Term Debt
During the three months ended February 28, 2025, long-term debt
increased by $1.25 billion to $14.79 billion at February 28, 2025,
as presented in our Consolidated Statements of Financial
Condition. This increase is primarily due to proceeds of
$350.0 million from the drawdown of an unsecured credit facility,
$216.9 million from the issuances of unsecured senior notes,
$275.7 million from net issuances of structured notes and
$595.1 million from increased subsidiaries’ borrowings. These
increases were partially offset by repayments of $82.9 million on
our unsecured senior notes and $56.6 million of valuation gains
on our structured notes.
At February 28, 2025, our unsecured long-term debt has a
weighted average maturity of approximately 7.3 years.
At February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024 our borrowings
under several credit facilities classified within Long-term debt in
our Consolidated Statements of Financial Condition amounted to
$1.18 billion and $775.3 million, respectively. Interest on these
credit facilities is based on an adjusted SOFR plus a spread or
other adjusted rates, as defined in the various credit agreements.
The credit facility agreements contain certain covenants that,
among other things, require us to maintain specified levels of
tangible net worth and liquidity amounts, certain credit and rating
levels and impose certain restrictions on future indebtedness of
and require specified levels of regulated capital and cash
reserves for certain of our subsidiaries. At February 28, 2025, we
February 2025 Form 10-Q 53
were in compliance with all covenants under theses credit
facilities.
Long-term debt ratings:
| Rating | Outlook | |
|---|---|---|
| Moody’s Investors Service ......................................... | Baa2 | Stable |
| Standard & Poor’s ........................................................ | BBB | Stable |
| Fitch Ratings ................................................................. | BBB+ | Stable |
| Jefferies LLC | Jefferies International Limited | Jefferies GmbH | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rating | Outlook | Rating | Outlook | Rating | Outlook | |
| Moody’s Investors Service .......... | Baa1 | Stable | Baa1 | Stable | Baa1 | Stable |
| Standard & Poor’s ............ | BBB+ | Stable | BBB+ | Stable | BBB+ | Stable |
Access to external financing to finance our day-to-day operations,
as well as the cost of that financing, is dependent upon various
factors, including our debt ratings. Our current debt ratings are
dependent upon many factors, including industry dynamics,
operating and economic environment, operating results,
operating margins, earnings trend and volatility, balance sheet
composition, liquidity and liquidity management, our capital
structure, our overall risk management, business diversification
and our market share and competitive position in the markets in
which we operate. Deterioration in any of these factors could
impact our credit ratings. While certain aspects of a credit rating
downgrade are quantifiable pursuant to contractual provisions,
the impact on our business and trading results in future periods
is inherently uncertain and depends on a number of factors,
including the magnitude of the downgrade, the behavior of
individual clients and future mitigating action taken by us.
In connection with certain over-the-counter derivative contract
arrangements and certain other trading arrangements, we may be
required to provide additional collateral to counterparties,
exchanges and clearing organizations in the event of a credit
rating downgrade. At February 28, 2025, the amount of additional
collateral that could be called by counterparties, exchanges and
clearing organizations under the terms of such agreements in the
event of a downgrade of our long-term credit rating below
investment grade was $164.4 million. For certain foreign clearing
organizations, credit rating is only one of several factors
employed in determining collateral that could be called. The
above represents management’s best estimate for additional
collateral to be called in the event of a credit rating downgrade.
The impact of additional collateral requirements is considered in
our CFP and calculation of MLO, as described above.
Equity Capital
Common Stock
At February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024, we had
565,000,000 authorized shares of voting common stock with a
par value of $1.00 per share and had 206,249,504 and
205,504,272 common shares outstanding, respectively. At
February 28, 2025, we had 13,950,457 share-based awards that
do not require the holder to pay any exercise price and 5,064,740
stock options that require the holder to pay a weighted average
exercise price of $22.69 per share.
The Board of Directors has authorized the repurchase of
common stock up to $250.0 million under a share repurchase
program. We did not purchase any shares under our share
repurchase program during the three months ended February 28,
2025. Treasury stock repurchases during three months ended
February 28, 2025 represent repurchases of common stock for
net-share withholding under our equity compensation plan.
Dividends
Three Months Ended February 28, 2025
| Declaration Date | Record Date | Payment Date | Per Common Share Amount |
|---|---|---|---|
| January 8, 2025 | February 14, 2025 | February 27, 2025 | $0.40 |
On January 8, 2025, the Board of Directors increased our
quarterly dividend from $0.35 to $0.40 per common share. On
March 26, 2025, the Board of Directors declared a dividend of
$0.40 per common share to be paid on May 29, 2025 to common
shareholders of record at May 19, 2025.
The payment of dividends is subject to the discretion of our
Board of Directors and depends upon general business
conditions and other factors that our Board of Directors may
deem to be relevant.
Non-Voting Common Stock
On June 28, 2023, shareholders approved an Amended and
Restated Certificate of Incorporation, which authorized the
issuance of 35,000,000 shares of non-voting common stock with
a par value of $1.00 per share (the “Non-Voting Common
Shares”). The Non-Voting Common Shares are entitled to share
equally, on a per share basis, with the voting common stock, in
dividends and distributions. Upon the effectiveness of the
Amended and Restated Certificate of Corporation on June 30,
2023, the number of authorized shares of common stock
remains at 600,000,000 shares, composed of 565,000,000 shares
of voting common stock and 35,000,000 shares of Non-Voting
Common Shares.
Series B Preferred Stock
On April 27, 2023, we established Series B Non-Voting
Convertible Preferred Shares with a par value of $1.00 per share
(“Series B Preferred Stock”) and designated 70,000 shares as
Series B Preferred Stock. The Series B Preferred Stock has a
liquidation preference of $17,500 per share and rank senior to our
voting common stock upon dissolution, liquidation or winding up
of Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Each share of Series B Preferred
Stock is automatically convertible into 500 shares of non-voting
common stock, subject to certain anti-dilution adjustments, three
years after issuance. The Series B Preferred Stock participates in
cash dividends and distributions alongside our voting common
stock on an as-converted basis.
Additionally, on April 27, 2023, we entered into an Exchange
Agreement with Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation (“SMBC”),
which entitles SMBC to exchange shares of our voting common
stock for shares of the Series B Preferred Stock at a rate of 500
shares of voting common stock for one share of Series B
Preferred Stock. The Exchange Agreement is limited to 55,125
shares of Preferred Stock and SMBC is required to pay $1.50 per
share of voting common stock so exchanged. As of November
30, 2024, SMBC had cumulatively exchanged approximately 27.6
million shares of voting common stock for 55,125 shares of
Series B Preferred Stock. Following this exchange, SMBC
increased its ownership of our common stock and as a result, the
CEO of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group, Inc. was elected and
now serves on our Board of Directors. On September 19, 2024,
54 Jefferies Financial Group Inc.
SMBC purchased 9.2 million shares of our common stock. At
February 28, 2025, SMBC owns approximately 15.7% of our
common stock on an as-converted basis and 14.5% on a fully-
diluted, as-converted basis. Refer to Note 22, Related Party
Transactions for further information regarding transactions with
SMBC.
During the three months ended February 28, 2025 and
February 29, 2024, we paid cash dividends of $11.0 million and
$6.3 million, respectively, to the Series B Preferred stockholder.
Net Capital
Jefferies LLC is a broker-dealer registered with the SEC and a
member firm of the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority
(“FINRA”) and is subject to the SEC Uniform Net Capital Rule
(“Rule 15c3-1”), which requires the maintenance of minimum net
capital, and has elected to calculate minimum capital
requirements using the alternative method permitted by Rule
15c3-1 in calculating net capital. Jefferies LLC, as a dually-
registered U.S. broker-dealer and futures commission merchant
(“FCM”), is also subject to Regulation 1.17 of the Commodity
Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) under the Commodity
Exchange Act (“CEA”), which sets forth minimum financial
requirements. The minimum net capital requirement in
determining excess net capital for a dually registered U.S. broker-
dealer and FCM is equal to the greater of the requirement under
SEA Rule 15c3-1 or CFTC Regulation 1.17. Accordingly, FINRA is
the designated examining authority for Jefferies LLC and the
National Futures Association (“NFA”) is the designated self-
regulatory organization (“DSRO”) for Jefferies LLC as an FCM
Jefferies Financial Services, Inc. (“JFSI”) is registered with the
SEC as a Security-Based Swap Dealer (“SBS Dealer”) and an OTC
Derivatives Dealer (“OTCDD”) subject to the SEC’s SBS dealer
regulatory rules and the SEC’s net capital requirements pursuant
to Rule 18a-1. JFSI is also registered as a swap dealer with the
CFTC and is subject to the CFTC’s regulatory capital
requirements pursuant to the minimum financial requirements for
swap dealers under CFTC Regulation 23.101. Additionally, as a
registered member firm, JFSI is subject to the net capital
requirements of the NFA. Accordingly, the SEC is the designated
examining authority for JFSI in its capacity as an SBS Dealer and
OTCDD, while the NFA is the DSRO for JFSI, as a CFTC registered
swap dealer.
Certain non-U.S. subsidiaries are subject to capital adequacy
requirements as prescribed by the regulatory authorities in their
respective jurisdictions. This includes Jefferies International
Limited which is subject to the regulatory supervision and
requirements of the Financial Conduct Authority (“FCA”) in the
U.K. Jefferies International Limited’s’ own funds requirement
represents the highest of the permanent minimum capital
requirement, fixed overheads requirement and k-factor
requirements set out in the Investment Firms Prudential Regime
(“IFPR”) under the FCA’s MIFIDPRU sourcebook.
At February 28, 2025, Jefferies LLC’s and JFSI’s net capital and
excess net capital were as follows (in thousands):
$ in thousands
| Net Capital | Excess Net Capital | |
|---|---|---|
| Jefferies LLC ................................................................. | $1,112,504 | $984,377 |
| JFSI - SEC ...................................................................... | 426,334 | 406,334 |
| JFSI - CFTC ................................................................... | 426,334 | 400,338 |
In addition, the equivalent capital requirements for Jefferies
International Limited, on a consolidated basis, is a total capital of
$1,740.0 million and an excess capital of $920.0 million at
February 28, 2025.
At February 28, 2025, Jefferies LLC, JFSI and JIL are in
compliance with their applicable requirements.
The regulatory capital requirements referred to above may
restrict our ability to withdraw capital from our regulated
subsidiaries.
Customer Protection and Segregation Requirement
As a registered broker dealer that clears and carries customer
accounts, Jefferies LLC is subject to the customer protection
provisions under SEC Rule 15c3-3 and is required to compute a
reserve formula requirement for customer accounts and deposit
cash or qualified securities into a special reserve bank account
for the exclusive benefit of customers. At February 28, 2025,
Jefferies LLC had $485.1 million in cash and qualified U.S.
Government securities on deposit in special reserve bank
accounts for the exclusive benefit of customers.
As a registered broker dealer that clears and carries proprietary
accounts of brokers or dealers (commonly referred to as “PAB”),
Jefferies LLC is also required to compute a reserve requirement
for PABs pursuant to SEC Rule 15c3-3. At February 28, 2025,
Jefferies LLC had $595.0 million in cash and qualified U.S.
Government securities in special reserve bank accounts for the
exclusive benefit of PABs.
Other Developments
In February 2022, Russia invaded Ukraine. Following Russia’s
invasion, the U.S., the U.K., and the European Union governments,
among others, developed coordinated financial and economic
sanctions targeting Russia that, in various ways, constrain
transactions with numerous Russian entities, including major
Russian banks and individuals; transactions in Russian sovereign
debt; and investment, trade and financing to, from, or in Ukraine.
We do not have any operations in Russia or any clients with
significant Russian operations and we have minimal market risk
related to securities of companies either domiciled or operating
in Russia. We continue to closely monitor the status of global
sanctions and restrictions, trading conditions related to Russian
securities and the credit risk and nature of our counterparties.
In October 2023, Hamas attacked Israel. Our investments and
assets in our growing Israeli business could be negatively
affected by consequences from the geopolitical and military
conflict in the region. We continue to closely monitor the status
of global sanctions and restrictions arising from the conflict.
Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements
We have contractual commitments arising in the ordinary course
of business for securities loaned or purchased under agreements
to resell, repurchase agreements, future purchases and sales of
foreign currencies, securities transactions on a when-issued
basis, purchases and sales of corporate loans in the secondary
market and underwriting. Each of these financial instruments and
activities contains varying degrees of off-balance sheet risk
whereby the fair values of the securities underlying the financial
instruments may be in excess of, or less than, the contract
amount. The settlement of these transactions is not expected to
have a material effect upon our consolidated financial
statements.
In the normal course of business, we engage in other off balance-
sheet arrangements, including derivative contracts. Neither
derivatives’ notional amounts nor underlying instrument values
are reflected as assets or liabilities in our Consolidated
Statements of Financial Condition. Rather, the fair values of
derivative contracts are reported in our Consolidated Statements
of Financial Condition as Financial instruments owned or
February 2025 Form 10-Q 55
Financial instruments sold, not yet purchased as applicable.
Derivative contracts are reflected net of cash paid or received
pursuant to credit support agreements and are reported on a net
by counterparty basis when a legal right of offset exists under an
enforceable master netting agreement. For additional information
about our accounting policies and our derivative activities, refer
to Note 2, Summary of Significant Accounting Policies, in our
consolidated financial statements included in Part II, Item 8 of
our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended November 30,
2024 and Note 6, Fair Value Disclosures and Note 7, Derivative
Financial Instruments in our consolidated financial statements
included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
56 Jefferies Financial Group Inc.
Risk Management
Overview
Risk is an inherent part of our business and activities. The extent
to which we properly and effectively identify, assess, monitor and
manage each of the various types of risk involved in our activities
is critical to our financial soundness, viability and profitability.
Accordingly, we have a comprehensive risk management
approach, with a formal governance structure and policies and
procedures outlining frameworks and processes to identify,
assess, monitor and manage risk. Principal risks involved in our
business activities include market, credit, liquidity and capital,
operational, model and strategic risk. Legal and compliance, new
business and reputational risk are also included within our
principal risks.
Risk management is a multifaceted process that requires
communication, judgment and knowledge of financial products
and markets. Our risk management process encompasses the
active involvement of executive and senior management, and
also many departments independent of the revenue-producing
business units, including Risk Management, Operations,
Information Technology, Compliance, Legal and Finance. Our risk
management policies, procedures and methodologies are flexible
in nature and are subject to ongoing review and modification.
In achieving our strategic business objectives, our risk appetite
incorporates keeping our clients’ interests as top priority and
ensuring we are in compliance with applicable laws, rules and
regulations, as well as adhering to the highest ethical standards.
We undertake prudent risk-taking that protects the capital base
and franchise, utilizing risk limits and tolerances that avoid
outsized risk-taking. We maintain a diversified business mix and
avoid significant concentrations to any sector, product,
geography or activity and set quantitative concentration limits to
manage this risk. We consider contagion, second order effects
and correlation in our risk assessment process and actively seek
out value opportunities of all sizes. We manage the risk of
opportunities larger than our approved risk levels through risk
sharing and risk distribution, sell-down and hedging as
appropriate. We have a limited appetite for illiquid assets and
complex derivative financial instruments. We maintain the asset
quality of our balance sheet through conducting trading activity in
liquid markets and generally ensure high turnover of our
inventory. We subject less liquid positions and derivative financial
instruments to particular scrutiny and use a wide variety of
specific metrics, limits and constraints to manage these risks.
We protect our reputation and franchise, as well as our standing
within the market. We operate a federated approach to risk
management and assign risk oversight responsibilities to a
number of functions with specific areas of focus.
For discussion of liquidity and capital risk management, refer to
the “Liquidity, Financial Condition and Capital Resources” section
herein.
Governance and Risk Management Structure
For a discussion of our governance and risk management
structure and our risk management framework, see
“Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition
and Results of Operations—Risk Management” in Part II, Item 7 of
our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended November 30,
Risk Considerations
We apply a comprehensive framework of limits on a variety of
key metrics to constrain the risk profile of our business activities.
The size of the limits reflects our risk appetite for a certain
activity under normal business conditions. Key metrics included
in our risk management framework include inventory position
and exposure limits on a gross and net basis, scenario analysis
and stress tests, Value-at-Risk (“VaR”), sensitivities, exposure
concentrations, aged inventory, Level 3 assets, counterparty
exposure, leverage and cash capital.
Market Risk
Market risk is defined as the risk of loss due to fluctuations in the
market value of financial assets and liabilities attributable to
changes in market variables.
Our market risk principally arises from interest rate risk, from
exposure to changes in the yield curve, the volatility of interest
rates, and credit spreads, and from equity price risks from
exposure to changes in prices and volatilities of individual
equities, equity baskets and equity indices. In addition,
commodity price risk results from exposure to the changes in
prices and volatilities of individual commodities, commodity
baskets and commodity indices, and foreign exchange risk
results from changes in foreign currency rates.
Market risk is present in our capital markets business through
market making, proprietary trading, underwriting and investing
activities and is present in our asset management business
through investments in separately managed accounts and direct
investments in funds. Given our involvement in a broad set of
financial products and markets, market risk exposures are
diversified and economic hedges are established as appropriate.
Market risk is monitored and managed through a set of key risk
metrics such as VaR, stress scenarios, risk sensitivities and
position exposures. Limits are set on the key risk metrics to
monitor and control the risk exposure ensuring that it is in line
with our risk appetite. Our risk appetite, including the market risk
limits, is periodically reviewed to reflect business strategy and
market environment. Material risk changes, top/emerging risks
and limit utilizations/breaches are highlighted through risk
reporting and escalated as necessary.
Trading is principally managed through front office trader
mandates, where each trader is provided a specific mandate in
line with our product registry. Mandates set out the activities,
currencies, countries and products that a desk is permitted to
trade in and set the limits applicable to a desk. Traders are
responsible for knowing their trading limits and trading in a
manner consistent with their mandate.
VaR
VaR is a statistical estimate of the potential loss from adverse
market movements over a specified time horizon within a
specified probability (confidence level). It provides a common
risk measure across financial instruments, markets and asset
classes. We estimate VaR using a model that simulates revenue
and loss distributions by applying historical market changes to
the current portfolio. We calculate a one-day VaR using a one-
year look-back period measured at a 95% confidence level.
February 2025 Form 10-Q 57
$ in millions
| Risk Categories | VaR at February 28, 2025 Daily VaR for the Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 Average | Daily Firmwide VaR High | Low | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interest Rates and Credit Spreads ............................. | $2.95 | $5.43 | $8.70 | $2.50 |
| Equity Prices ........................ | 11.76 | 10.37 | 12.14 | 7.67 |
| Currency Rates .................... | 1.36 | 1.00 | 1.72 | 0.54 |
| Commodity Prices .............. | 0.32 | 0.29 | 0.62 | 0.12 |
| Diversification Effect (1) .... | (4.46) | (3.96) | N/A | N/A |
| Firmwide VaR (2) ................ | $11.93 | $13.13 | $16.03 | $8.79 |
$ in millions
| Risk Categories | VaR at November 30, 2024 Daily VaR for the Three Months Ended November 30, 2024 Average | Daily Firmwide VaR High | Low | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interest Rates and Credit Spreads ............................. | $4.30 | $5.25 | $7.09 | $2.58 |
| Equity Prices ........................ | 8.31 | 11.14 | 13.56 | 8.16 |
| Currency Rates .................... | 0.84 | 0.61 | 1.01 | 0.32 |
| Commodity Prices .............. | 0.41 | 0.41 | 0.72 | 0.15 |
| Diversification Effect (1) .... | (2.19) | (4.66) | N/A | N/A |
| Firmwide VaR (2) ................ | $11.67 | $12.75 | $15.10 | $10.13 |
(1) The diversification effect is not applicable for the maximum and minimum
VaR values as the firmwide VaR and the VaR values for the four risk categories
might have occurred on different days during the period.
(2) The aggregated VaR presented here is less than the sum of the individual
components (i.e., interest rate risk, foreign exchange rate risk, equity risk and
commodity price risk) due to the benefit of diversification among the four risk
categories. Diversification benefit equals the difference between aggregated
VaR and the sum of VaRs for the four risk categories and arises because the
market risk categories are not perfectly correlated.
VaR for our capital markets trading activities, which excludes the
impact on VaR for each component of market risk from our asset
management activities, by interest rate and credit spreads, equity,
currency and commodity products:
$ in millions
| Risk Categories | VaR at February 28, 2025 Daily VaR for the Three Months Ended February 28, 2025 Average | Daily Capital Markets VaR High | Low | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interest Rates and Credit Spreads ............................. | $2.69 | $5.19 | $8.50 | $2.39 |
| Equity Prices ........................ | 4.09 | 4.67 | 6.95 | 3.41 |
| Currency Rates .................... | 0.75 | 0.72 | 1.08 | 0.51 |
| Diversification Effect (1) .... | (1.77) | (1.76) | N/A | N/A |
| Capital Markets VaR (2) .... | $5.76 | $8.82 | $14.01 | $5.76 |
$ in millions
| Risk Categories | VaR at November 30, 2024 Daily VaR for the Three Months Ended November 30, 2024 Average | Daily Capital Markets VaR High | Low | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Interest Rates and Credit Spreads ............................. | $4.33 | $5.39 | $11.88 | $0.98 |
| Equity Prices ........................ | 7.27 | 6.74 | 8.64 | 5.13 |
| Currency Rates .................... | 0.52 | 0.42 | 0.84 | 0.21 |
| Commodity Prices .............. | — | 0.01 | 0.01 | 0.01 |
| Diversification Effect (1) .... | (5.69) | (4.63) | N/A | N/A |
| Capital Markets VaR (2) .... | $6.43 | $7.93 | $10.58 | $5.52 |
(1) The diversification effect is not applicable for the maximum and minimum
VaR values as the capital markets VaR and the VaR values for the four risk
categories might have occurred on different days during the period.
(2) The aggregated VaR presented here is less than the sum of the individual
components (i.e., interest rate risk, foreign exchange rate risk, equity risk and
commodity price risk) due to the benefit of diversification among the four risk
categories. Diversification benefit equals the difference between aggregated
VaR and the sum of VaRs for the four risk categories and arises because the
market risk categories are not perfectly correlated.
58 Jefferies Financial Group Inc.
Our average daily firmwide VaR increased to $13.13 million for the three months ended February 28, 2025 from $12.75 million for the
three months ended November 30, 2024, primarily driven by a lower diversification effect, partially offset by a decrease in exposure to
movements in equity prices. The average daily capital markets VaR increased to $8.82 million for the three months ended February 28,
2025, from $7.93 million for the three months ended November 30, 2024, primarily driven by increases from a lower diversification
effect, partially offset by a decrease in exposure to movements in equity prices.
The efficacy of the VaR model is tested by comparing our actual daily net revenues for those positions included in the calculation of
VaR with the daily VaR estimate. This evaluation is performed at various levels, from the overall level down to specific business lines.
For the VaR model, revenue is defined as principal transactions revenues, trading related commissions, revenue from securitization
activities and net interest income. VaR backtesting methodologies differ for regulated entities with approved capital models.
For a 95% confidence one day VaR model (i.e., no intra-day trading), assuming current changes in market value are consistent with the
historical changes used in the calculation, losses would not be expected to exceed the VaR estimates more than twelve times on an
annual basis (i.e., once in every 20 days). During the three months ended February 28, 2025, there was one day when the aggregate net
trading loss exceeded the 95% one day VaR.
The chart below presents our daily firmwide and capital markets VaR over the last four quarters. The fluctuations in VaR during the first
quarter of 2025 were primarily driven by volatility in the equity markets.
Daily Net Trading Revenue
There were 4 days with firmwide trading losses out of a total of 61 trading days during the three months ended February 28, 2025. The
histogram below presents the distribution of our actual daily net trading revenue for substantially all of our trading activities:
February 2025 Form 10-Q 59
Other Risk Measures
The VaR model does not include certain positions that are best measured and monitored using sensitivity analysis. Risk Management
has additional procedures in place to assure that the level of potential loss driven by those positions not in the VaR model arising from
market movements are within acceptable levels. Such procedures include performing stress tests and profit and loss analysis. The
table below presents the potential reduction in earnings associated with a 10% stress of the fair value of the positions that are not
included in the VaR model at February 28, 2025:
$ in thousands
| 10% Sensitivity | |
|---|---|
| Investment in funds (1) ............................................................................................................................................................................................ | $135,111 |
| Private investments .................................................................................................................................................................................................. | 61,109 |
| Corporate debt securities in default ....................................................................................................................................................................... | 20,318 |
| Trade claims .............................................................................................................................................................................................................. | 2,883 |
(1) Includes investments in hedge funds, fund of funds and private equity funds classified within Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy and excluded from
the fair value hierarchy based on net asset value.
The impact of changes in our own credit spreads on our structured notes for which the fair value option was elected is not included in
VaR. The estimated credit spread risk sensitivity for each one basis point widening in our own credit spreads on financial liabilities for
which the fair value option was elected was an increase in value of approximately $1.6 million at February 28, 2025, which is included in
other comprehensive income.
Other Risk
We are also subject to interest rate risk on our long-term fixed interest rate debt. Generally, the fair market value of debt securities with
a fixed interest rate will increase as interest rates fall, and the fair market value will decrease as interest rates rise. The following table
represents principal cash flows by expected maturity dates and the related weighted-average interest rate on those maturities for our
consolidated long-term debt obligations, inclusive of any related interest rate hedges. For the variable rate borrowings, the weighted-
average interest rates are based on the rates in effect at the reporting date. Our market risk with respect to foreign currency exposure
on our long-term debt is also presented in the table below.
$ in thousands
| Rate Sensitive Liabilities: | Expected Maturity Date (Fiscal Years) 2025 | 2026 | 2027 | 2028 | 2029 | Thereafter | Total | Fair Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed Interest Rate Borrowings ....................................... | $679,786 | $77,814 | $608,471 | $1,167,588 | $307,290 | $5,424,391 | $8,265,340 | $8,214,603 |
| Weighted-Average Interest Rate ..................................... | 4.33% | 5.49% | 5.18% | 5.72% | 5.54% | 5.58% | ||
| Variable Interest Rate Borrowings.................................. | $442,605 | $596,562 | $955,076 | $49,707 | $302,044 | $1,423,269 | $3,769,263 | $3,619,728 |
| Weighted-Average Interest Rate ..................................... | 6.01% | 6.75% | 6.86% | 6.51% | 6.49% | 6.23% | ||
| Borrowings with Foreign Currency Exposure ............... | $17,672 | $1,196,217 | $363 | $518,350 | $522,210 | $918,072 | $3,172,884 | $3,098,719 |
| Weighted-Average Interest Rate ..................................... | 5.21% | 4.74% | 2.50% | 3.37% | 5.39% | 6.36% |
Stress Tests and Scenario Analysis
Stress tests are used to analyze the potential impact of specific
events or extreme market moves on the current portfolio both
firm-wide and within business segments. Stress testing is an
important part of our risk management approach because it
allows us to quantify our exposure to tail risks, highlight potential
loss concentrations, undertake risk/reward analysis, set risk
controls and overall assess and mitigate our risk.
We employ a range of stress scenarios, which comprise both
historical market price and rate changes and hypothetical market
environments, and generally involve simultaneous changes of
many risk factors. Indicative market changes in the scenarios
include, but are not limited to, a large widening of credit spreads,
a substantial decline in equities markets, significant moves in
selected emerging markets, large moves in interest rates and
changes in the shape of the yield curve.
Unlike our VaR, which measures potential losses within a given
confidence interval, stress scenarios do not have an associated
implied probability. Rather, stress testing is used to estimate the
potential loss from market moves that tend to be larger than
those embedded in the VaR calculation. Stress testing
complements VaR to cover for potential limitations of VaR such
as the breakdown in correlations, non-linear risks, tail risk and
extreme events and capturing market moves beyond the
confidence levels assumed in the VaR calculations.
Stress testing is performed and reported at least weekly as part
of our risk management process and on an ad hoc basis in
response to market events or concerns. Current stress tests
provide estimated revenue and loss of the current portfolio
through a range of both historical and hypothetical events. The
stress scenarios are reviewed and assessed at least annually so
that they remain relevant and up to date with market
developments. Additional hypothetical scenarios are also
conducted on a sub-portfolio basis to assess the impact of any
relevant idiosyncratic stress events as needed.
60 Jefferies Financial Group Inc.
Counterparty Credit Risk
Credit risk is the risk of loss due to adverse changes in a
counterparty’s credit worthiness or its ability or willingness to
meet its financial obligations in accordance with the terms and
conditions of a financial contract.
We are exposed to credit risk as a trading counterparty to other
broker-dealers and customers, as a counterparty to derivative
contracts, as a direct lender and through extending loan
commitments and providing securities-based lending and as a
member of exchanges and clearing organizations. Credit
exposure exists across a wide range of products, including cash
and cash equivalents, loans, securities finance transactions and
over-the-counter derivative contracts. The main sources of credit
risk are:
- Loans and lending arising in connection with our investment
banking and capital markets activities, which reflects our
exposure at risk on a default event with no recovery of loans.
Current exposure represents loans that have been drawn by the
borrower and lending commitments that are outstanding. In
addition, credit exposures on forward settling traded loans are
included within our loans and lending exposures for
consistency with the balance sheet categorization of these
items. Loans and lending also arise in connection with our
portion of a Secured Revolving Credit Facility that is with us
and Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company, to be
funded equally, to support loan underwritings by Jefferies
Finance. For further information on this facility, refer to Note
11, Investments in our consolidated financial statements
included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. In addition, we
have loans outstanding to certain of our officers and
employees (none of whom are executive officers or directors).
For further information on these employee loans, refer to Note
22, Related Party Transactions in our consolidated financial
statements included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
- Securities and margin financing transactions, which reflect our
credit exposure arising from reverse repurchase agreements,
repurchase agreements and securities lending agreements to
the extent the fair value of the underlying collateral differs from
the contractual agreement amount and from margin provided
to customers.
- OTC derivatives, which are reported net by counterparty when a
legal right of setoff exists under an enforceable master netting
agreement. OTC derivative exposure is based on a contract at
fair value, net of cash collateral received or posted under credit
support agreements. In addition, credit exposures on forward
settling trades are included within our derivative credit
exposures.
- Cash and cash equivalents, which includes both interest-
bearing and non-interest-bearing deposits at banks.
Credit is extended to counterparties in a controlled manner and in
order to generate acceptable returns, whether such credit is
granted directly or is incidental to a transaction. All extensions of
credit are monitored and managed as a whole to limit exposure
to loss related to credit risk. Credit risk is managed according to
the Credit Risk Management Policy, which sets out the process
for identifying counterparty credit risk, establishing counterparty
limits, and managing and monitoring credit limits. The policy
includes our approach for:
- Client on-boarding and approving counterparty credit limits;
- Negotiating, approving and monitoring credit terms in legal and
master documentation;
- Determining the analytical standards and risk parameters for
ongoing management and monitoring credit risk books;
- Actively managing daily exposure, exceptions and breaches;
and
- Monitoring daily margin call activity and counterparty
performance.
Counterparty credit exposure limits are granted within our credit
ratings framework, as detailed in the Credit Risk Management
Policy. The Credit Risk Department assesses counterparty credit
risk and sets credit limits at the counterparty master agreement
level. Limits must be approved by appropriate credit officers and
initiated in our credit and trading systems before trading
commences. All credit exposures are reviewed against approved
limits on a daily basis.
Our Secured Revolving Credit Facility, which supports loan
underwritings by Jefferies Finance, is governed under separate
policies other than the Credit Risk Management Policy and is
approved by our Board. The loans outstanding to certain of our
officers and employees are extended pursuant to a review by our
most senior management.
Current counterparty credit exposures at February 28, 2025 and
November 30, 2024 are summarized in the tables below and
provided by credit quality, region and industry. Credit exposures
presented take netting and collateral into consideration by
counterparty and master agreement. Collateral taken into
consideration includes both collateral received as cash as well as
collateral received in the form of securities or other
arrangements. Current exposure is the loss that would be
incurred on a particular set of positions in the event of default by
the counterparty, assuming no recovery. Current exposure equals
the fair value of the positions less collateral. Issuer risk is the
credit risk arising from inventory positions (for example,
corporate debt securities and secondary bank loans). Issuer risk
is included in our country risk exposure within the following
tables.
February 2025 Form 10-Q 61
Counterparty Credit Exposure by Credit Rating
$ in millions
| Loans and Lending At February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | Securities and Margin Finance At February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | OTC Derivatives At February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | Total At February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | Cash and Cash Equivalents At February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | Total with Cash and Cash Equivalents At February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| AAA Range | $— $— | $11.7 $12.0 | $— $— | $11.7 $12.0 | $7,517.2 $8,227.9 | $7,528.9 $8,239.9 |
| AA Range | 80.2 80.0 | 320.6 190.3 | 2.8 5.6 | 403.6 275.9 | 56.9 63.8 | 460.5 339.7 |
| A Range | 0.4 0.2 | 1,305.2 1,145.1 | 336.8 415.0 | 1,642.4 1,560.3 | 3,495.3 3,691.8 | 5,137.7 5,252.1 |
| BBB Range | 250.0 253.5 | 55.5 31.2 | 16.6 40.0 | 322.1 324.7 | 106.4 169.4 | 428.5 494.1 |
| BB or Lower | 40.7 37.2 | 42.5 31.2 | 112.8 78.7 | 196.0 147.1 | 0.5 0.5 | 196.5 147.6 |
| Unrated | 273.2 322.6 | — — | 5.0 5.3 | 278.2 327.9 | — — | 278.2 327.9 |
| Total | $644.5 $693.5 | $1,735.5 $1,409.8 | $474.0 $544.6 | $2,854.0 $2,647.9 | $11,176.3 $12,153.4 | $14,030.3 $14,801.3 |
| Counterparty Credit Exposure by Region | ||||||
| Loans and Lending | Securities and Margin Finance | OTC Derivatives | Total | Cash and Cash Equivalents | Total with Cash and Cash Equivalents | |
| At | At | At | At | At | At | |
| $ in millions | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 |
| Asia-Pacific/Latin America/Other | $15.8 $15.8 | $157.5 $130.4 | $1.3 $0.2 | $174.6 $146.4 | $409.6 $520.3 | $584.2 $666.7 |
| Europe and the Middle East | 0.3 0.2 | 612.6 523.2 | 57.3 88.7 | 670.2 612.1 | 74.1 70.8 | 744.3 682.9 |
| North America | 628.4 677.5 | 965.4 756.2 | 415.4 455.7 | 2,009.2 1,889.4 | 10,692.6 11,562.3 | 12,701.8 13,451.7 |
| Total | $644.5 $693.5 | $1,735.5 $1,409.8 | $474.0 $544.6 | $2,854.0 $2,647.9 | $11,176.3 $12,153.4 | $14,030.3 $14,801.3 |
| Counterparty Credit Exposure by Industry | ||||||
| Loans and Lending | Securities and Margin Finance | OTC Derivatives | Total | Cash and Cash Equivalents | Total with Cash and Cash Equivalents | |
| At | At | At | At | At | At | |
| $ in millions | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 | February 28, 2025 November 30, 2024 |
| Asset Managers | $10.0 $6.4 | $0.8 $0.8 | $— $— | $10.8 $7.2 | $7,517.2 $8,227.9 | $7,528.0 $8,235.1 |
| Banks, Broker-Dealers | 250.5 253.7 | 1,031.4 849.0 | 366.4 466.6 | 1,648.3 1,569.3 | 3,659.1 3,925.5 | 5,307.4 5,494.8 |
| Corporates | 171.5 187.1 | — — | 101.6 69.5 | 273.1 256.6 | — — | 273.1 256.6 |
| As Agent Banks | — — | 584.5 474.8 | — — | 584.5 474.8 | — — | 584.5 474.8 |
| Other | 212.5 246.3 | 118.8 85.2 | 6.0 8.5 | 337.3 340.0 | — — | 337.3 340.0 |
| Total | $644.5 $693.5 | $1,735.5 $1,409.8 | $474.0 $544.6 | $2,854.0 $2,647.9 | $11,176.3 $12,153.4 | $14,030.3 $14,801.3 |
62 Jefferies Financial Group Inc.
Country Risk Exposure
Country risk is the risk that events or developments that occur in the general environment of a country or countries due to economic,
political, social, regulatory, legal or other factors, will affect the ability of obligors of the country to honor their obligations. We define the
country of risk as the country of jurisdiction or domicile of the obligor and monitor country risk resulting from both trading positions and
counterparty exposure, which may not include the offsetting benefit of any financial instruments utilized to manage market risk. The
following tables reflect our top exposures at February 28, 2025 and November 30, 2024 to the sovereign governments, corporations and
financial institutions in those non- U.S. countries in which we have net long issuer and counterparty exposure:
$ in millions
| February 28, 2025 Issuer Risk Fair Value of Long Debt Securities | Fair Value of Short Debt Securities | Net Derivative Notional Exposure | Counterparty Risk Loans and Lending | Securities and Margin Finance | OTC Derivatives | Cash and Cash Equivalents | Issuer and Counterparty Risk Excluding Cash and Cash Equivalents | Including Cash and Cash Equivalents | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | $1,799.1 | $(905.7) | $(499.7) | $0.3 | $100.3 | $50.6 | $45.4 | $544.9 | $590.3 |
| Canada | 333.3 | (267.7) | 48.7 | 0.1 | 55.9 | 293.8 | 52.4 | 464.1 | 516.5 |
| Germany | 971.4 | (1,466.8) | 726.6 | — | 106.2 | 1.4 | 22.6 | 338.8 | 361.4 |
| France | 794.5 | (683.5) | (19.3) | — | 226.3 | 0.1 | — | 318.1 | 318.1 |
| Hong Kong | 87.0 | (49.9) | (3.0) | — | 4.7 | 0.2 | 188.8 | 39.0 | 227.8 |
| Japan | 1,917.5 | (1,823.4) | (14.2) | — | 86.7 | — | 25.3 | 166.6 | 191.9 |
| Spain | 623.5 | (428.7) | (118.0) | — | 60.5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 137.8 | 138.3 |
| Italy | 882.9 | (926.4) | 172.3 | — | 5.2 | 1.7 | 0.2 | 135.7 | 135.9 |
| India | 26.0 | (29.7) | (0.9) | — | — | — | 137.8 | (4.6) | 133.2 |
| Netherlands | 632.7 | (596.1) | 81.3 | — | 9.5 | 0.1 | 0.8 | 127.5 | 128.3 |
| Total | $8,067.9 | $(7,177.9) | $373.8 | $0.4 | $655.3 | $348.4 | $473.8 | $2,267.9 | $2,741.7 |
$ in millions
| November 30, 2024 Issuer Risk Fair Value of Long Debt Securities | Fair Value of Short Debt Securities | Net Derivative Notional Exposure | Counterparty Risk Loans and Lending | Securities and Margin Finance | OTC Derivatives | Cash and Cash Equivalents | Issuer and Counterparty Risk Excluding Cash and Cash Equivalents | Including Cash and Cash Equivalents | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Canada | $259.2 | $(280.1) | $109.7 | $— | $46.6 | $360.1 | $59.3 | $495.5 | $554.8 |
| United Kingdom | 1,332.5 | (680.8) | (364.3) | 0.1 | 95.8 | 76.5 | 37.9 | 459.8 | 497.7 |
| France | 592.2 | (495.0) | 7.7 | 0.1 | 184.9 | 1.6 | — | 291.5 | 291.5 |
| Hong Kong | 73.5 | (36.5) | (6.0) | — | 2.4 | — | 250.0 | 33.4 | 283.4 |
| Spain | 403.1 | (263.6) | (6.0) | — | 63.1 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 197.8 | 198.3 |
| Netherlands | 484.1 | (450.4) | 125.4 | — | 5.7 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 166.5 | 166.6 |
| Japan | 2,146.0 | (2,093.5) | 0.4 | — | 63.2 | — | 37.4 | 116.1 | 153.5 |
| Australia | 523.8 | (426.8) | (16.8) | — | 26.5 | — | 44.6 | 106.7 | 151.3 |
| India | 27.4 | (29.7) | — | — | — | — | 142.9 | (2.3) | 140.6 |
| Italy | 1,070.9 | (569.3) | (402.9) | — | 0.4 | — | 1.1 | 99.1 | 100.2 |
| Total | $6,912.7 | $(5,325.7) | $(552.8) | $0.2 | $488.6 | $441.1 | $573.8 | $1,964.1 | $2,537.9 |
Operational Risk
Operational risk is the risk of financial or non-financial impact,
resulting from inadequate or failed internal processes, people
and systems or from external events. We interpret this definition
as including not only financial loss or gain but also other negative
impacts to our objectives such as reputational impact, legal/
regulatory impact and impact on our clients. Third-party risk is
also included as a subset of operational risk and is defined as the
potential threat presented to us, our employees or clients from
our supply chain and other third parties used to perform a
process, service or activity on our behalf.
Our Operational Risk framework includes governance as well as
operational risk processes, comprises operational risk event
capture and analysis, risk and control self-assessments,
operational risk key indicators, action tracking, risk monitoring
and reporting, deep dive risk assessments, new business
approvals and vendor risk management. Each revenue producing
and support department is responsible for the management and
reporting of operational risks and the implementation of the
Operational Risk Management Policy and processes within the
department with regular operational risk training provided to our
employees.
Operational risk events are mapped to risk categories used for
the consistent classification of risk data to support root cause
and trend analysis, which includes:
- Fraud and Theft
- Clients and Business Practices
- Market Conduct / Regulatory Compliance
- Business Disruption
- Technology
- Data Protection and Privacy
- Trading
- Transaction and Process Management
- People
- Cybersecurity
- Vendor Risk
Our Operational Risk Management Policy and operational risk
management framework, infrastructure, methodology, processes,
guidance and oversight of the operational risk processes are
centralized and consistent firmwide and, additionally, subject to
regional and legal entity operational risk governance, as required.
February 2025 Form 10-Q 63
We also maintain a Third-Party (“Vendor”) Risk Management
Policy and Framework to ensure adequate control and monitoring
over our critical third parties, which includes processes for
conducting periodic reviews covering areas of risk including
financial health, information security, privacy, business continuity
management, disaster recovery and operational risk of our
vendors.
Model Risk
Model risk refers to the risk of loss resulting from decisions that
are based on the output of models, due to errors or weaknesses
in the design and development, implementation or improper use
of models. We use quantitative models primarily to value certain
financial assets and liabilities and to monitor and manage our
risk. Model risk is a function of the model materiality, frequency
of use, complexity and uncertainty around inputs and
assumptions used in a given model. Robust model risk
management is a core part of our risk management approach
and is overseen through our risk governance structure and risk
management controls.
Legal and Compliance Risk
Legal and compliance risk includes the risk of noncompliance
with applicable legal and regulatory requirements. We are subject
to extensive regulation in the different jurisdictions in which we
conduct our business. We have various procedures addressing
issues such as regulatory capital requirements, sales and trading
practices, use of and safekeeping of customer funds, credit
granting, collection activities, anti-money laundering and record
keeping. These risks also reflect the potential impact that
changes in local and international laws and tax statutes have on
the economics and viability of current or future transactions. In
an effort to mitigate these risks, we continuously review new and
pending regulations and legislation and participate in various
industry interest groups. We also maintain an anonymous hotline
for employees or others to report suspected inappropriate
actions by us or by our employees or agents.
New Business Risk
New business risk refers to the risks of entering into a new line of
business or offering a new product. By entering a new line of
business or offering a new product, we may face risks that we are
unaccustomed to dealing with and may increase the magnitude
of the risks we currently face. The New Business Committee
reviews proposals for new businesses and new products to
determine if we are prepared to handle the additional or
increased risks associated with entering into such activities.
Reputational Risk
We recognize that maintaining our reputation among clients,
investors, regulators and the general public is an important
aspect of minimizing legal and operational risks. Maintaining our
reputation depends on a large number of factors, including the
selection of our clients and the conduct of our business
activities. We seek to maintain our reputation by screening
potential clients and by conducting our business activities in
accordance with high ethical standards. Our reputation and
business activity can be affected by statements and actions of
third parties, even false or misleading statements by them. We
actively monitor public comment concerning us and are vigilant
in seeking to assure accurate information and perception
prevails.
Market risk
As filed, 196 characters, with its headings, lists and tables. Extracted from the main document; charts and exhibits are in the original on sec.gov.
Risk
Quantitative and qualitative disclosures about market risk are set
forth under “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial
Condition and Results of Operations —Risk Management” in
Controls and procedures
As filed, 1,376 characters, with its headings, lists and tables. Extracted from the main document; charts and exhibits are in the original on sec.gov.
Our Management, under the direction of our Chief Executive
Officer and Chief Financial Officer, evaluated the effectiveness of
our disclosure controls and procedures as of February 28, 2025.
Based on that evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief
Financial Officer concluded that our disclosure controls and
procedures as of February 28, 2025 are functioning effectively to
provide reasonable assurance that the information required to be
disclosed by us in reports filed under the Securities Exchange Act
of 1934 is (i) recorded, processed, summarized and reported
within the time periods specified in the SEC’s rules and forms and
(ii) accumulated and communicated to our management,
including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer,
as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding disclosure. A
controls system cannot provide absolute assurance that the
objectives of the controls system are met, and no evaluation of
controls can provide absolute assurance that all control issues
and instances of fraud, if any, within a company have been
detected.
No change in our internal control over financial reporting
occurred during the quarter ended February 28, 2025 that has
materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our
internal control over financial reporting.
64 Jefferies Financial Group Inc.
Risk factors
As filed, 357 characters, with its headings, lists and tables. Extracted from the main document; charts and exhibits are in the original on sec.gov.
Information regarding our risk factors appears in Item 1A. of our
Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended November 30,
2024. These risk factors describe some of the assumptions,
risks, uncertainties and other factors that could adversely affect
our business or that could otherwise result in changes that differ
materially from our expectations.
Figures reported in this filing
Standardized line items from the XBRL in this filing, for the period ended 2025-02-28. Comparative periods it repeats are left out.
| Line item | Period | Value | XBRL concept |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 3 months2024-12-01 to 2025-02-28 | $1.14bn | us-gaap:RevenueFromContractWithCustomerExcludingAssessedTax |
| Cost of revenue | 3 months2024-12-01 to 2025-02-28 | $41.6m | us-gaap:CostOfGoodsAndServicesSold |
| Income tax | 3 months2024-12-01 to 2025-02-28 | $14.2m | us-gaap:IncomeTaxExpenseBenefit |
| Net income | 3 months2024-12-01 to 2025-02-28 | $136.8m | us-gaap:ProfitLoss |
| Diluted EPS | 3 months2024-12-01 to 2025-02-28 | $0.57 | us-gaap:EarningsPerShareDiluted |
| Basic EPS | 3 months2024-12-01 to 2025-02-28 | $0.60 | us-gaap:EarningsPerShareBasic |
| Diluted shares (weighted) | 3 months2024-12-01 to 2025-02-28 | 222,448,000 shares | us-gaap:WeightedAverageNumberOfDilutedSharesOutstanding |
| Capital expenditure | 3 months2024-12-01 to 2025-02-28 | $49.6m | us-gaap:PaymentsToAcquirePropertyPlantAndEquipment |
| Dividends paid | 3 months2024-12-01 to 2025-02-28 | $92.7m | us-gaap:PaymentsOfDividendsCommonStock |
| Share repurchases | 3 months2024-12-01 to 2025-02-28 | $56.3m | us-gaap:PaymentsForRepurchaseOfCommonStock |
| Cash and equivalents | At period end2025-02-28 | $11.18bn | us-gaap:CashAndCashEquivalentsAtCarryingValue |
| Total assets | At period end2025-02-28 | $70.22bn | us-gaap:Assets |
| Total liabilities | At period end2025-02-28 | $59.95bn | us-gaap:Liabilities |
| Long-term debt | At period end2025-02-28 | $14.79bn | us-gaap:LongTermDebt |
| Short-term borrowings | At period end2025-02-28 | $1.17bn | us-gaap:ShortTermBorrowings |
| Shareholders' equity | At period end2025-02-28 | $10.20bn | us-gaap:StockholdersEquity |
Source: SEC EDGAR, the filing index for accession 0001628280-25-017192. Last ingested by Listed: Oct 30, 2026, 21:38 ET. Listed shows no prices and gives no investment advice.