Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC Purchases 18,938 Shares of Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS)

Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC grew its position in shares of Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) by 12.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 171,292 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 18,938 shares during the quarter. Orion Portfolio Solutions LLC’s holdings in Barclays were worth $2,276,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Brooklyn Investment Group bought a new position in Barclays during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Activest Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Barclays during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Sierra Ocean LLC purchased a new position in Barclays in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted 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 worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 1,678 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Versant Capital Management Inc purchased a new stake in Barclays during the fourth quarter valued at about $44,000. 3.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Barclays Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE:BCS opened at $15.42 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.33. The company has a market cap of $55.43 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.38, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.38. Barclays PLC has a 12 month low of $8.95 and a 12 month high of $16.34. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $15.32 and a 200-day moving average price of $13.79.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.15. Barclays had a return on equity of 7.74% and a net margin of 20.81%. As a group, equities analysts anticipate 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. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be given a dividend of $0.2737 per share. This is an increase from Barclays’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.27. This represents a yield of 2.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Barclays’s payout ratio is presently 29.89%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on BCS shares. StockNews.com lowered Barclays from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 27th. BNP Paribas upgraded Barclays from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

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.