25,395 Shares in Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) Acquired by Sapient Capital LLC

Sapient Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm acquired 25,395 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $61,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in LYG. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. increased its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 19.3% during the third quarter. Cambridge Investment Research Advisors Inc. now owns 122,640 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $261,000 after buying an additional 19,858 shares in the last quarter. Raymond James & Associates raised its position in Lloyds Banking Group by 0.7% in the 3rd quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 1,972,113 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,201,000 after purchasing an additional 12,851 shares during the last quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. boosted its stake in Lloyds Banking Group by 23.4% in the third quarter. Raymond James Financial Services Advisors Inc. now owns 707,999 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,508,000 after purchasing an additional 134,075 shares in the last quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. increased its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 74.2% in the third quarter. Stratos Wealth Partners LTD. now owns 23,333 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $50,000 after buying an additional 9,942 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC bought a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the third quarter valued at about $213,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

Lloyds Banking Group Price Performance

LYG opened at $2.67 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $2.53 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $2.30. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.82, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.48. The firm has a market capitalization of $42.53 billion, a PE ratio of 7.03, a P/E/G ratio of 1.09 and a beta of 1.29. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a 52 week low of $1.88 and a 52 week high of $2.72.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.09 EPS for the quarter. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 10.35% and a net margin of 13.41%. The business had revenue of $14.35 billion during the quarter. As a group, analysts anticipate that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 31st. Investors of record on Friday, April 12th will be paid a dividend of $0.046 per share. This represents a yield of 5.9%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. Lloyds Banking Group’s payout ratio is 47.37%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on LYG shares. Bank of America upgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, March 21st. Berenberg Bank began coverage on Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Thursday, April 25th. They set a “hold” rating and a $2.75 price objective on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and two have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $52.55.

Lloyds Banking Group 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.