Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) Shares Sold by XTX Topco Ltd

XTX Topco Ltd decreased its position in Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) by 42.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The fund owned 233,130 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 168,606 shares during the period. XTX Topco Ltd’s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $634,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio acquired a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the 3rd quarter valued at about $486,000. Virtu Financial LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 325.7% during the 3rd quarter. Virtu Financial LLC now owns 184,829 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $577,000 after purchasing an additional 141,409 shares during the period. Sanctuary Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 118.4% during the third quarter. Sanctuary Advisors LLC now owns 198,087 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $618,000 after purchasing an additional 107,395 shares during the last quarter. World Investment Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the third quarter valued at $64,000. Finally, Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB purchased a new position in Lloyds Banking Group during the third quarter worth about $262,000. 2.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lloyds Banking Group Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NYSE LYG opened at $3.77 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $3.61 and a 200 day moving average price of $3.12. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a 12-month low of $2.49 and a 12-month high of $3.91. The company has a market cap of $57.19 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.41 and a beta of 0.95.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last announced its 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 company had revenue of $9.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.76 billion. Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 11.45% and a return on equity of 8.46%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.1035 per share. This represents a yield of 4%. This is a positive change from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms have recently commented on LYG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. HSBC raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded Lloyds Banking Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have assigned a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $2.75.

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.