Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) Upgraded at Wall Street Zen

Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note published on Sunday.

Several other analysts have also issued reports on LYG. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Monday, September 22nd. Royal Bank Of Canada raised Lloyds Banking Group from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Zacks Research lowered Lloyds Banking Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, September 23rd. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Lloyds Banking Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Up 0.8%

Lloyds Banking Group stock opened at $4.53 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $67.43 billion, a PE ratio of 11.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.44. Lloyds Banking Group has a one year low of $2.56 and a one year high of $4.69. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $4.48 and a 200 day moving average of $4.19.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.04. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 9.28% and a net margin of 17.51%.The business had revenue of $6.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.86 billion. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Lloyds Banking Group will post 0.27 EPS for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 4th were paid a $0.0655 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 370.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 4th. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.50%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lloyds Banking Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 18.7% in the third quarter. Fiduciary Financial Group LLC now owns 15,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $69,000 after buying an additional 2,380 shares during the period. Riversedge Advisors LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 10.5% in the second quarter. Riversedge Advisors LLC now owns 25,680 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $109,000 after buying an additional 2,433 shares during the period. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 20.4% in the first quarter. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC now owns 15,168 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $57,000 after buying an additional 2,573 shares during the period. Drive Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 6.8% in the second quarter. Drive Wealth Management LLC now owns 41,065 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $175,000 after buying an additional 2,599 shares during the period. Finally, Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 16.2% in the second quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 18,778 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $80,000 after buying an additional 2,613 shares during the period. 2.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lloyds Banking Group Company Profile

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.