Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. Decreases Stake in Lloyds Banking Group PLC $LYG

Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. cut its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group PLC (NYSE:LYG) by 35.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 547,840 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 298,754 shares during the quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc.’s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $2,328,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of the business. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 6.1% in the 1st quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. now owns 24,154,117 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $92,269,000 after buying an additional 1,397,163 shares during the period. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 9.0% during the first quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 10,492,898 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $40,083,000 after acquiring an additional 863,347 shares in the last quarter. Millennium Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 15.5% in the first quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 8,199,299 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,321,000 after acquiring an additional 1,100,359 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. grew its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 6.0% in the first quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 7,011,774 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $26,785,000 after purchasing an additional 399,866 shares in the last quarter. Finally, First Eagle Investment Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 9.9% during the 2nd quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 6,816,161 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $28,969,000 after purchasing an additional 612,523 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have weighed in on LYG. Kepler Capital Markets raised Lloyds Banking Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 9th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Tuesday, October 28th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, August 5th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have given a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lloyds Banking Group currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

NYSE LYG opened at $4.85 on Monday. Lloyds Banking Group PLC has a 52-week low of $2.56 and a 52-week high of $4.86. The company has a fifty day moving average of $4.53 and a 200-day moving average of $4.32. The company has a market capitalization of $71.81 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.84, a P/E/G ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.94, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.55.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 23rd. The financial services provider reported $0.05 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.12 by ($0.07). Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 18.04% and a return on equity of 8.38%. The firm had revenue of $6.56 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $5.02 billion. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Lloyds Banking Group PLC will post 0.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

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.