Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) Reaches New 1-Year High – Here’s Why

Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) shares reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $3.18 and last traded at $3.18, with a volume of 3941478 shares. The stock had previously closed at $3.10.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

LYG has been the topic of several recent research reports. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Kepler Capital Markets started coverage on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. BNP Paribas upgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 5th. Finally, Citigroup downgraded Lloyds Banking Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Monday, August 5th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $2.75.

Lloyds Banking Group Trading Up 1.9 %

The business’s 50-day moving average price is $3.04 and its 200-day moving average price is $2.86. The firm has a market capitalization of $49.39 billion, a PE ratio of 8.16 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.48.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter. Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 12.40% and a return on equity of 10.34%. The company had revenue of $9.55 billion for the quarter. As a group, analysts expect that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 5th were paid a $0.0546 dividend. This is an increase from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. This represents a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 5th. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 26.32%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lloyds Banking Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Virtu Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group during the fourth quarter worth about $327,000. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 5.6% in the 4th quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 22,166,362 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $52,978,000 after purchasing an additional 1,180,775 shares in the last quarter. SageView Advisory Group LLC acquired a new position in Lloyds Banking Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $97,000. HighPoint Advisor Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $113,000. Finally, CWM LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 133.4% in the 1st quarter. CWM LLC now owns 51,514 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $133,000 after buying an additional 29,444 shares during the period. 2.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Lloyds Banking Group

Lloyds Banking Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides a range of banking and financial services in the United Kingdom and internationally. It operates in three segments: Retail; Commercial Banking; and Insurance, Pensions and Investments. The Retail segment offers a range of financial service products, including current accounts, savings, mortgages, motor finance, unsecured loans, leasing solutions, and credit cards to personal customers.