LPL Financial LLC Sells 79,347 Shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG)

LPL Financial LLC decreased its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG - Free Report) by 4.0% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,880,185 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 79,347 shares during the quarter. LPL Financial LLC's holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $5,114,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. American Century Companies Inc. grew its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 10.1% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 6,611,908 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $17,984,000 after acquiring an additional 604,924 shares during the last quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP raised its position in Lloyds Banking Group by 389.2% during the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 133,398 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $363,000 after purchasing an additional 106,128 shares during the last quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC lifted its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 1,830.6% during the 4th quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 18,939 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $52,000 after buying an additional 17,958 shares during the period. Koss Olinger Consulting LLC increased its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 396.3% in the fourth quarter. Koss Olinger Consulting LLC now owns 100,606 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $274,000 after buying an additional 80,335 shares during the period. Finally, PDS Planning Inc lifted its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 21.4% in the fourth quarter. PDS Planning Inc now owns 43,429 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $118,000 after acquiring an additional 7,649 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 2.15% of the company's stock.

Lloyds Banking Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE LYG traded up $0.01 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $3.59. 44,917,596 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,498,804. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $3.55 and a 200 day simple moving average of $3.10. The stock has a market cap of $54.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 10.86 and a beta of 0.95. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a 1-year low of $2.42 and a 1-year high of $3.91.

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

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.1035 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This is a boost from Lloyds Banking Group's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. This represents a yield of 4%. Lloyds Banking Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 60.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

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

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.