Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) Earns “Buy” Rating from Shore Capital

Shore Capital restated their buy rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) in a report published on Wednesday morning, MarketBeat.com reports.

A number of other analysts have also recently commented on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 41 ($0.51) to GBX 45 ($0.56) and gave the company an underweight rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upgraded Lloyds Banking Group to a market perform rating and set a GBX 50 ($0.62) price objective for the company in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Peel Hunt assumed coverage on Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Friday, April 19th. They set a hold rating and a GBX 55 ($0.68) price objective for the company. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a buy rating and set a GBX 59 ($0.73) price objective on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Friday, February 16th. Finally, Berenberg Bank upped their price target on Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 55 ($0.68) to GBX 58 ($0.72) and gave the stock a hold rating in a research report on Thursday, February 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have given a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of Hold and an average target price of GBX 55.33 ($0.68).

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

Lloyds Banking Group stock opened at GBX 52.30 ($0.65) on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of £33.30 billion, a PE ratio of 653.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.94 and a beta of 1.22. Lloyds Banking Group has a one year low of GBX 39.42 ($0.49) and a one year high of GBX 54.28 ($0.67). The stock has a fifty day moving average of GBX 49.77 and a 200 day moving average of GBX 45.84.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 21st. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 11th will be paid a GBX 1.84 ($0.02) dividend. This is a positive change from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a dividend yield of 4.25%. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio is 3,750.00%.

Insider Transactions at Lloyds Banking Group

In other Lloyds Banking Group news, insider William Chalmers acquired 128,118 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 52 ($0.64) per share, with a total value of £66,621.36 ($82,289.23). In other Lloyds Banking Group news, insider Robin Budenberg acquired 1,000,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was purchased at an average price of GBX 45 ($0.56) per share, with a total value of £450,000 ($555,830.04). Also, insider William Chalmers acquired 128,118 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, March 25th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of GBX 52 ($0.64) per share, with a total value of £66,621.36 ($82,289.23). Corporate insiders own 0.24% 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.