Equitable Holdings Inc. Raises Stock Holdings in Lloyds Banking Group PLC $LYG

Equitable Holdings Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group PLC (NYSE:LYG) by 534.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 140,623 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 118,457 shares during the quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc.’s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $820,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Royal Bank of Canada increased its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 10.6% in the first quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 1,126,734 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $4,305,000 after acquiring an additional 108,100 shares during the period. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 124.1% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 263,246 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,006,000 after acquiring an additional 145,772 shares during the last quarter. Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 18.4% during the first quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 812,424 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $3,103,000 after purchasing an additional 126,247 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. grew its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 162.2% in the first quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 11,724 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $45,000 after purchasing an additional 7,253 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Acadian Asset Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the first quarter worth about $639,000. Institutional investors own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages recently commented on LYG. Weiss Ratings upgraded Lloyds Banking Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a report on Friday, August 21st. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Citigroup reissued a “buy” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Berenberg Bank began coverage on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, July 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lloyds Banking Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Up 0.2%

LYG stock opened at $5.93 on Friday. Lloyds Banking Group PLC has a twelve month low of $4.20 and a twelve month 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 firm has a market cap of $86.20 billion, a PE ratio of 13.79, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.87. The business has a 50 day moving average of $6.02 and a 200 day moving average of $5.60.

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

Lloyds Banking Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th will be given a dividend of $0.084 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 10th. This represents a dividend yield of 273.0%. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 37.21%.

Lloyds Banking Group Profile

Lloyds Banking Group plc is a UK-based banking and financial services company that provides a broad range of retail, commercial and insurance products. Its principal consumer-facing brands include Lloyds Bank, Halifax and Bank of Scotland, through which it offers current accounts, savings, mortgages, credit cards and personal loans. The group also delivers services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and larger corporate clients, supplying business accounts, lending, payments and cash-management solutions.

In addition to core banking, Lloyds operates a significant wealth and insurance arm under the Scottish Widows brand, offering life insurance, pensions, investment and retirement planning products.