Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) Raised to Buy at The Goldman Sachs Group

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) was upgraded by stock analysts at The Goldman Sachs Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note issued on Tuesday, Marketbeat.com reports.

Several other equities research analysts also recently weighed in on LYG. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, August 1st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Lloyds Banking Group from a “hold” rating to a “moderate buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised Lloyds Banking Group from a “sector perform” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Monday. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Lloyds Banking Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, July 26th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, five have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lloyds Banking Group has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Lloyds Banking Group Price Performance

LYG stock opened at $4.35 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.44. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $4.20 and a 200-day moving average price of $3.82. Lloyds Banking Group has a 52-week low of $2.56 and a 52-week high of $4.44. The firm has a market capitalization of $65.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.86, a PEG ratio of 0.66 and a beta of 1.05.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.14 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $6.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $4.86 billion. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 9.28% and a net margin of 17.51%. Equities research analysts forecast that Lloyds Banking Group will post 0.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lloyds Banking Group

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of LYG. Crux Wealth Advisors bought a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. V Square Quantitative Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Advisor Resource Council purchased a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $37,000. 2.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Lloyds Banking Group

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.