JPMorgan Chase & Co. Raises Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) Price Target to GBX 71

Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) had its price target upped by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from GBX 62 ($0.80) to GBX 71 ($0.92) in a research note published on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. They currently have an underweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on LLOY. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 61 ($0.79) to GBX 71 ($0.92) and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Shore Capital reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Thursday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of GBX 62.40 ($0.81).

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

LLOY stock opened at GBX 73.32 ($0.95) on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of £44.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.27, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.23. Lloyds Banking Group has a 1 year low of GBX 49.42 ($0.64) and a 1 year high of GBX 74.46 ($0.96). The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of GBX 65.82 and a 200-day simple moving average of GBX 59.58.

Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported GBX 6.30 ($0.08) earnings per share for the quarter. Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 16.66% and a return on equity of 11.22%. On average, equities research analysts predict that Lloyds Banking Group will post 7.3199528 EPS for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be issued a dividend of GBX 2.11 ($0.03) per share. This represents a dividend yield of 3.01%. This is an increase from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous dividend of $1.06. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 37.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider William Chalmers sold 11,338 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The shares were sold at an average price of GBX 70 ($0.91), for a total value of £7,936.60 ($10,275.25). 0.17% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Lloyds Banking Group Company Profile

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.