Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) Shares Sold by Intrust Bank NA

Intrust Bank NA reduced its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) by 8.6% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 195,878 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 18,317 shares during the quarter. Intrust Bank NA’s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $533,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Brentview Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $32,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group during the fourth quarter worth approximately $34,000. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Finally, Simon Quick Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lloyds Banking Group during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. 2.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LYG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Hsbc Global Res raised Lloyds Banking Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut Lloyds Banking Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Lloyds Banking Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $2.75.

Lloyds Banking Group Trading Down 1.2 %

Shares of LYG opened at $3.84 on Friday. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a 1-year low of $2.42 and a 1-year high of $3.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $58.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.62 and a beta of 1.25. The business’s 50-day moving average price is $3.42 and its 200 day moving average price is $3.06.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.03). The firm had revenue of $9.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.76 billion. Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 11.45% and a return on equity of 8.46%. On average, research analysts predict that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a $0.1035 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This is a boost from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.61%.

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.