JPMorgan Chase & Co. Sells 4,348,626 Shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG)

JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG - Free Report) by 65.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 2,311,003 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 4,348,626 shares during the period. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $6,286,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of LYG. Brentview Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in Lloyds Banking Group during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Simon Quick Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 2.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on LYG shares. HSBC raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Lloyds Banking Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut Lloyds Banking Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Lloyds Banking Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Lloyds Banking Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $2.75.

Lloyds Banking Group Price Performance

LYG stock traded up $0.01 during trading on Friday, hitting $3.77. 24,840,045 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,791,733. The stock has a market cap of $57.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.41 and a beta of 0.95. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a 1 year low of $2.50 and a 1 year high of $3.91. The firm's 50 day moving average is $3.61 and its two-hundred day moving average is $3.12.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.08 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $9.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.76 billion. Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 11.45% and a return on equity of 8.46%. As a group, analysts anticipate that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a $0.1035 dividend. This is a positive change from Lloyds Banking Group's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a yield of 4%. Lloyds Banking Group's payout ratio is 60.61%.

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.