Barclays (LON:BARC) Hits New 52-Week High – Still a Buy?

Shares of Barclays PLC (LON:BARC) reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as GBX 377.90 ($5.12) and last traded at GBX 376.65 ($5.11), with a volume of 192370297 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 374.90 ($5.08).

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the company. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 380 ($5.15) target price on shares of Barclays in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Shore Capital increased their price target on Barclays from GBX 395 ($5.35) to GBX 410 ($5.56) and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 29th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued an “overweight” rating on shares of Barclays in a research note on Wednesday, July 30th. Citigroup lowered Barclays to a “neutral” rating and increased their price target for the stock from GBX 360 ($4.88) to GBX 366 ($4.96) in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Barclays from GBX 355 ($4.81) to GBX 435 ($5.90) and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday, August 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of GBX 400.20 ($5.42).

Barclays Price Performance

The stock has a market capitalization of £53.29 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.91, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.36. The firm’s fifty day moving average is GBX 345.20 and its 200-day moving average is GBX 314.67.

Barclays (LON:BARC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported GBX 11.70 ($0.16) earnings per share for the quarter. Barclays had a return on equity of 6.97% and a net margin of 19.54%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Barclays PLC will post 39.1062802 EPS for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Barclays

In related news, insider Julia Wilson bought 2,648 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 371 ($5.03) per share, for a total transaction of £9,824.08 ($13,315.37). Also, insider Brian Shea bought 2,931 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, July 30th. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 371 ($5.03) per share, with a total value of £10,874.01 ($14,738.43). Insiders purchased 98,837 shares of company stock valued at $33,407,827 over the last 90 days. Corporate insiders own 1.47% of the company’s stock.

Barclays Company Profile

Barclays PLC provides various financial services in the United Kingdom, Europe, the Americas, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. The company operates through Barclays UK and Barclays International division segments. It offers financial services, such as retail banking, credit cards, wholesale banking, investment banking, wealth management, and investment management services.