Lloyds Banking Group PLC $LYG Holdings Boosted by Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC

Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group PLC (NYSE:LYG) by 8.4% in the second quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 81,683 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 6,312 shares during the period. Sequoia Financial Advisors LLC’s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $347,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. V Square Quantitative Management LLC purchased a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $35,000. Advisor Resource Council purchased a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the first quarter worth approximately $37,000. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group during the first quarter worth approximately $38,000. Finally, Ameritas Advisory Services LLC purchased a new position in Lloyds Banking Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

LYG opened at $4.46 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.68, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 1.44. The company has a market cap of $66.03 billion, a PE ratio of 11.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.02. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $4.49 and a 200-day moving average of $4.21. Lloyds Banking Group PLC has a 52-week low of $2.56 and a 52-week high of $4.69.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.14 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.10 by $0.04. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 9.28% and a net margin of 17.51%.The firm had revenue of $6.13 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.86 billion. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Lloyds Banking Group PLC will post 0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lloyds Banking Group Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 19th. Investors of record on Monday, August 4th were issued a $0.0655 dividend. This represents a yield of 370.0%. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 4th. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 32.50%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday. Kepler Capital Markets raised Lloyds Banking Group from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 9th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, August 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Lloyds Banking Group from an “underweight” rating to a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, August 1st. Finally, Citigroup restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Monday, September 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have issued a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Lloyds Banking Group Company Profile

Lloyds Banking Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides a range of banking and financial services in the United Kingdom and internationally. It operates in three segments: Retail; Commercial Banking; and Insurance, Pensions and Investments. The Retail segment offers a range of financial service products, including current accounts, savings, mortgages, motor finance, unsecured loans, leasing solutions, and credit cards to personal customers.