Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Lloyds Banking Group plc (LON:LLOY) shares reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Thursday . The stock traded as high as GBX 193 ($2.50) and last traded at GBX 73.27 ($0.95), with a volume of 242791766 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 73.36 ($0.95).

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on LLOY. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 62 ($0.80) to GBX 71 ($0.92) and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Citigroup increased their price target on 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. Finally, Shore Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Thursday, February 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have given a hold rating and one has given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of GBX 62.40 ($0.81).

Lloyds Banking Group Price Performance

The company has a 50-day moving average of GBX 66.77 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 59.92. The company has a market capitalization of £44.64 billion, a PE ratio of 9.31, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.23.

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

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Lloyds Banking Group

In other news, insider William Chalmers sold 11,338 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction 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 ($10,272.59). Insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

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.