Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) Stock Price Passes Above Two Hundred Day Moving Average - Here's Why

Lloyds Banking Group plc (LON:LLOY - Get Free Report) shares passed above its 200-day moving average during trading on Friday . The stock has a 200-day moving average of GBX 61.13 ($0.81) and traded as high as GBX 71.10 ($0.95). Lloyds Banking Group shares last traded at GBX 70.32 ($0.93), with a volume of 86,028,359 shares changing hands.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts recently weighed in on LLOY shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 62 ($0.82) to GBX 71 ($0.94) and gave the stock an "underweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 25th. Citigroup lifted their price objective on shares of Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 61 ($0.81) to GBX 71 ($0.94) and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Shore Capital reissued a "hold" rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Thursday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of GBX 62.40 ($0.83).

Lloyds Banking Group Trading Down 0.6 %

The firm's fifty day moving average price is GBX 69 and its 200-day moving average price is GBX 61.13. The firm has a market cap of £42.64 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.89, a PEG ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.23.

Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported GBX 6.30 ($0.08) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 11.22% and a net margin of 16.66%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 7.3199528 earnings per share for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of GBX 2.11 ($0.03) per share. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. This is a positive change from Lloyds Banking Group's previous dividend of $1.06. This represents a dividend yield of 3.01%. Lloyds Banking Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Lloyds Banking Group news, insider William Chalmers sold 11,338 shares of Lloyds Banking Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 70 ($0.93), for a total value of £7,936.60 ($10,552.59). 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Lloyds Banking Group

We are the largest UK retail and commercial financial services provider with over 25 million customers and a presence in nearly every community. The Group's main business activities are retail and commercial banking, general insurance and long-term savings, provided through the largest branch network and digital bank in the UK, with well recognised brands including Lloyds Bank, Halifax, Bank of Scotland and Scottish Widows. Our shares are quoted on the London and New York stock exchanges and we are one of the largest companies in the FTSE 100 index.

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