Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) Sees Strong Trading Volume

Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) shares saw unusually-strong trading volume on Wednesday . Approximately 18,941,332 shares traded hands during trading, an increase of 107% from the previous session’s volume of 9,150,507 shares.The stock last traded at $2.48 and had previously closed at $2.45.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Separately, Bank of America upgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and two have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Lloyds Banking Group presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $64.17.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.48. The stock has a market cap of $39.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.02 and a beta of 1.32. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $2.41 and its 200-day moving average is $2.25.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.11 earnings per share for the quarter. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 11.29% and a net margin of 17.97%. The firm had revenue of $19.05 billion for the quarter. Analysts anticipate that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lloyds Banking Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.046 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio is presently 45.00%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LYG. Vicus Capital bought a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $79,000. Kathmere Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 153.5% during the first quarter. Kathmere Capital Management LLC now owns 89,069 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $231,000 after purchasing an additional 53,927 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management grew its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 12.1% during the first quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 38,516 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $100,000 after purchasing an additional 4,167 shares during the last quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 33.6% during the first quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 105,634 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $274,000 after purchasing an additional 26,556 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cooper Financial Group bought a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $44,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

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.