Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) Research Coverage Started at Berenberg Bank

Equities researchers at Berenberg Bank assumed coverage on shares of Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) in a research report issued to clients and investors on Thursday, Briefing.com reports. The firm set a “hold” rating and a $2.75 price target on the financial services provider’s stock. Berenberg Bank’s target price would indicate a potential upside of 8.06% from the stock’s current price.

Separately, Bank of America upgraded Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $55.39.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

Shares of LYG stock opened at $2.55 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 1.48, a current ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.81. The business has a 50 day moving average of $2.46 and a two-hundred day moving average of $2.27. Lloyds Banking Group has a 52 week low of $1.88 and a 52 week high of $2.72. The company has a market cap of $40.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 6.36, a PEG ratio of 1.06 and a beta of 1.32.

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

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lloyds Banking Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in LYG. American Century Companies Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 6.1% in the third quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 3,986,428 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $8,491,000 after buying an additional 228,359 shares in the last quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the third quarter valued at $1,363,000. UBS Group AG increased its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 21.9% in the third quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 2,285,047 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,867,000 after buying an additional 411,188 shares in the last quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. increased its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 8.0% in the fourth quarter. Pinnacle Associates Ltd. now owns 157,205 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $376,000 after buying an additional 11,600 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Ritholtz Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 88.3% in the fourth quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 344,708 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $824,000 after buying an additional 161,610 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

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.