Barclays (NYSE:BCS) Hits New 12-Month High – Should You Buy?

Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) shares hit a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $16.34 and last traded at $16.31, with a volume of 2038594 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $16.25.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on BCS shares. BNP Paribas raised shares of Barclays from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. StockNews.com lowered shares of Barclays from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Barclays currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Barclays Stock Performance

The company has a fifty day moving average price of $15.19 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $13.65. The firm has a market cap of $58.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.82, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.33, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.29.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.15. Barclays had a net margin of 20.81% and a return on equity of 7.74%. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Barclays PLC will post 2 EPS for the current year.

Barclays Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.2737 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is a boost from Barclays’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.27. Barclays’s dividend payout ratio is currently 29.89%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Barclays

Several large investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Henry James International Management Inc. purchased a new position in Barclays during the 4th quarter worth approximately $438,000. ABC Arbitrage SA bought a new stake in shares of Barclays in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $21,514,000. Stonehage Fleming Financial Services Holdings Ltd acquired a new position in Barclays in the fourth quarter worth approximately $599,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Barclays by 3,073.2% in the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 689,413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,052,000 after acquiring an additional 667,687 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA bought a new stake in Barclays in the third quarter worth approximately $3,647,000. 3.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Barclays Company Profile

Barclays PLC provides various financial services in the United Kingdom, Europe, the Americas, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. The company operates through Barclays UK and Barclays International division segments. It offers financial services, such as retail banking, credit cards, wholesale banking, investment banking, wealth management, and investment management services.