Barclays (NYSE:BCS) Sees Strong Trading Volume – What’s Next?

Shares of Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) saw unusually-high trading volume on Tuesday . Approximately 53,600,218 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 203% from the previous session’s volume of 17,661,973 shares.The stock last traded at $15.41 and had previously closed at $15.11.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com cut shares of Barclays from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th.

Barclays Trading Up 2.6 %

The stock has a market cap of $55.91 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.41, a P/E/G ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.40. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $14.13 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $13.08. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.33, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.34 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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, research analysts forecast that Barclays PLC will post 2 EPS for the current year.

Barclays Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a $0.2737 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. This is a positive change from Barclays’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.27. This represents a dividend yield of 2.7%. Barclays’s dividend payout ratio is presently 28.80%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Barclays during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Activest Wealth Management acquired a new stake in shares of Barclays during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in shares of Barclays in the fourth quarter worth $38,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its stake in Barclays by 135.5% in the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 2,916 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,678 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc bought a new stake in Barclays during the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 3.39% of the company’s stock.

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.