OLD National Bancorp IN Boosts Position in Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS)

OLD National Bancorp IN raised its stake in shares of Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 36,228 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,732 shares during the quarter. OLD National Bancorp IN’s holdings in Barclays were worth $285,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Barclays during the fourth quarter worth about $47,000. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. grew its holdings in shares of Barclays by 9.7% during the fourth quarter. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. now owns 64,587 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $509,000 after purchasing an additional 5,721 shares in the last quarter. Simplicity Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of Barclays during the fourth quarter worth about $83,000. Clarius Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of Barclays by 8.0% during the fourth quarter. Clarius Group LLC now owns 37,224 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $293,000 after purchasing an additional 2,753 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Barclays during the fourth quarter worth about $159,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 3.39% of the company’s stock.

Barclays Stock Up 7.9 %

Shares of BCS opened at $10.36 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $39.26 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.56, a P/E/G ratio of 0.37 and a beta of 1.48. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $9.10 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $7.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.63, a current ratio of 1.34 and a quick ratio of 1.34. Barclays PLC has a 1 year low of $6.23 and a 1 year high of $10.45.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.39). The firm had revenue of $6.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $7.38 billion. Barclays had a return on equity of 6.09% and a net margin of 16.82%. On average, analysts forecast that Barclays PLC will post 1.58 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Barclays Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, April 3rd. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a $0.2671 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a yield of 4.6%. This is an increase from Barclays’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.14. Barclays’s payout ratio is presently 37.96%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, StockNews.com lowered Barclays from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have assigned a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $190.00.

Barclays 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.