Barclays Target of Unusually High Options Trading (NYSE:BCS)

Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) was the target of some unusual options trading on Wednesday. Traders purchased 5,014 call options on the company. This represents an increase of 90% compared to the average daily volume of 2,641 call options.

Barclays Stock Down 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:BCS opened at $27.11 on Thursday. The firm has a market capitalization of $91.48 billion, a PE ratio of 10.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.00. Barclays has a 1 year low of $19.28 and a 1 year high of $28.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.76, a current ratio of 1.46 and a quick ratio of 1.46. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $27.47 and its two-hundred day moving average is $24.90.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Monday, July 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.90 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.89 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $10.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $10.78 billion. Barclays had a net margin of 22.27% and a return on equity of 8.80%. Analysts predict that Barclays will post 2.83 EPS for the current year.

Barclays Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 15th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 7th will be given a $0.3134 dividend. This represents a yield of 224.0%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 7th. Barclays’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 22.39%.

Institutional Trading of Barclays

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of BCS. NewEdge Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Barclays by 72.8% in the first quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 47,051 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $723,000 after purchasing an additional 19,818 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its holdings in Barclays by 19.6% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 23,572 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $438,000 after purchasing an additional 3,868 shares during the period. Rhumbline Advisers increased its holdings in Barclays by 6.8% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 45,179 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $840,000 after purchasing an additional 2,885 shares during the period. Flow Traders U.S. LLC acquired a new stake in Barclays in the 2nd quarter valued at about $451,000. Finally, Cerity Partners LLC raised its position in Barclays by 3.2% in the 2nd quarter. Cerity Partners LLC now owns 243,698 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,530,000 after purchasing an additional 7,604 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 3.39% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings upgraded shares of Barclays from a “buy (b-)” rating to a “buy (b)” rating in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Berenberg Bank assumed coverage on Barclays in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Barclays in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Barclays in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Finally, Piper Sandler upgraded shares of Barclays from an “overweight” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, June 12th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Barclays Company Profile

Barclays PLC (NYSE: BCS) is a British multinational bank and financial services company headquartered in London. The firm provides a broad range of banking and financial products to individual, corporate and institutional customers. Its core activities span retail and business banking, credit cards and payments, corporate and investment banking, and wealth and investment management.

In retail and business banking, Barclays offers deposit accounts, mortgages, personal and business loans, and card services.