Fisher Asset Management LLC Increases Position in Lloyds Banking Group PLC $LYG

Fisher Asset Management LLC raised its position in Lloyds Banking Group PLC (NYSE:LYG) by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 149,958,264 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 1,129,641 shares during the quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC’s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $680,811,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LYG. Royal Bank of Canada raised its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 10.6% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,126,734 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,305,000 after purchasing an additional 108,100 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 124.1% during the 1st quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 263,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,006,000 after acquiring an additional 145,772 shares during the period. Jane Street Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 18.4% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 812,424 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,103,000 after acquiring an additional 126,247 shares in the last quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 162.2% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 11,724 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after acquiring an additional 7,253 shares during the period. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the first quarter valued at $639,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently issued reports on LYG. Weiss Ratings raised Lloyds Banking Group from a “hold (c)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Citigroup reissued a “neutral” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Monday, December 1st. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Monday, November 24th. BNP Paribas Exane cut shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Tuesday, February 3rd. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Lloyds Banking Group Price Performance

Shares of Lloyds Banking Group stock opened at $5.54 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.84, a current ratio of 1.48 and a quick ratio of 1.48. Lloyds Banking Group PLC has a one year low of $3.27 and a one year high of $6.34. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $5.61 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $5.00. The stock has a market capitalization of $81.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.20, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.86.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, January 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.12 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.11 by $0.01. Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 24.30% and a return on equity of 10.06%. The firm had revenue of $6.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.52 billion. Analysts forecast that Lloyds Banking Group PLC will post 0.27 EPS for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 29th. Stockholders of record on Friday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of $0.134 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 447.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 10th. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 30.95%.

About Lloyds Banking Group

Lloyds Banking Group plc is a UK-based banking and financial services company that provides a broad range of retail, commercial and insurance products. Its principal consumer-facing brands include Lloyds Bank, Halifax and Bank of Scotland, through which it offers current accounts, savings, mortgages, credit cards and personal loans. The group also delivers services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and larger corporate clients, supplying business accounts, lending, payments and cash-management solutions.

In addition to core banking, Lloyds operates a significant wealth and insurance arm under the Scottish Widows brand, offering life insurance, pensions, investment and retirement planning products.