Lloyds Banking Group PLC (NYSE:LYG) Short Interest Update

Lloyds Banking Group PLC (NYSE:LYG) was the recipient of a significant growth in short interest during the month of September. As of September 15th, there was short interest totaling 9,213,756 shares, a growth of 120.6% from the August 31st total of 4,176,386 shares. Based on an average daily volume of 14,519,336 shares, the short-interest ratio is presently 0.6 days. Approximately 0.1% of the company’s shares are short sold.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have weighed in on the stock. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen cut Lloyds Banking Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Sunday. Bank of America raised Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lloyds Banking Group

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. WCM Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the 1st quarter worth approximately $128,228,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 2.9% during the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 12,564,633 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $73,250,000 after purchasing an additional 351,626 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE lifted its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 2.9% during the second quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 8,005,022 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $46,669,000 after purchasing an additional 222,310 shares in the last quarter. Assetmark Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 12.7% in the first quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 3,849,993 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $19,365,000 after purchasing an additional 433,849 shares during the period. Finally, O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 6.9% in the fourth quarter. O Shaughnessy Asset Management LLC now owns 3,055,373 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,193,000 after purchasing an additional 196,875 shares during the period. 2.15% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lloyds Banking Group Trading Down 0.8%

Shares of Lloyds Banking Group stock traded down $0.04 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $5.72. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 20,989,267 shares, compared to its average volume of 18,827,373. The business has a fifty day moving average of $6.01 and a 200 day moving average of $5.65. Lloyds Banking Group has a 1-year low of $4.42 and a 1-year high of $6.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.52 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12. The company has a market capitalization of $83.00 billion, a PE ratio of 13.31, a P/E/G ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 0.87.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.14 by ($0.01). Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 24.97% and a return on equity of 10.94%. The business had revenue of $6.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.86 billion. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Lloyds Banking Group will post 0.55 EPS for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 10th were given a $0.0840 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 10th. This is a negative change from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous dividend of $0.1340. This represents a dividend yield of 273.0%. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.53%.

Lloyds Banking Group Company Profile

Lloyds Banking Group plc is a United Kingdom-based financial services company headquartered in London. Its principal businesses include retail banking, commercial banking, insurance, pensions and long-term savings. The group serves individuals, small and medium-sized businesses, commercial clients and institutional customers primarily across the United Kingdom.

The group operates through well-known brands including Lloyds Bank, Halifax, Bank of Scotland and Scottish Widows. Its products and services include current and savings accounts, mortgages, credit cards, personal loans, business banking, corporate lending, investment products, insurance and retirement planning.