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I'm sticking with a 'Buy' rating for Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group following my assessment of its valuations and prospects. SMFG revealed its updated mid-teens ROE goal for the long run; I think this is achievable with cost-cutting moves and domestic rate hikes. The stock's current P/B of around 1.3x is undemanding, considering the significant discount to its U.S. peers.

JPMorgan Chase and Co. trimmed its holdings in shares of Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group Inc (NYSE: SMFG) by 54.9% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 537,443 shares of the bank's stock after selling 653,123

Bloomberg's Katherine Doherty reacts to the reports about Japanese bank Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group potentially taking over Jefferies Financial Group. While there have been denials of any immediate takeover plans, SMFG has been gradually increasing its stake in Jefferies, currently disclosed at around 20%.

Shares of Jefferies Financial Group surged on Tuesday after reports suggested Japan's Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (SMFG) is exploring a potential takeover of the US investment bank, even as conflicting signals emerged over the likelihood of a deal. Takeover report lifts Jefferies shares Jefferies stock rose as much as 14% in premarket trading following a report by the Financial Times that SMFG is working on…