Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) Sees Large Volume Increase – Should You Buy?

Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Thursday . Approximately 32,247,814 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 132% from the previous session’s volume of 13,885,036 shares.The stock last traded at $3.78 and had previously closed at $3.75.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on LYG shares. Morgan Stanley upgraded Lloyds Banking Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered Lloyds Banking Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $2.75.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Down 0.9 %

The company has a market capitalization of $56.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.32 and a beta of 1.25. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $3.31 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3.03.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.08 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $9.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.76 billion. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 8.46% and a net margin of 11.45%. On average, research analysts forecast that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a $0.1035 dividend. This is an increase from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a dividend yield of 4%. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 60.61%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lloyds Banking Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LYG. Crux Wealth Advisors purchased a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Brentview Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $32,000. Finally, SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

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.