Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) Receives Consensus Rating of “Buy” from Analysts

Shares of Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) have been given an average recommendation of “Buy” by the six analysts that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation, four have issued a buy recommendation and one has issued a strong buy recommendation on the company.

BCS has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Barclays in a research note on Friday. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating on shares of Barclays in a report on Thursday. Zacks Research raised shares of Barclays from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Monday, September 29th. Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an “overweight” rating on shares of Barclays in a report on Monday, October 6th. Finally, Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Barclays in a research report on Thursday.

Barclays Trading Up 0.4%

Shares of NYSE:BCS opened at $20.70 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $72.38 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.54, a P/E/G ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.10. Barclays has a 1 year low of $12.14 and a 1 year high of $21.22. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.94, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $20.33 and its 200 day simple moving average is $18.58.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 22nd. The financial services provider reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.02. Barclays had a return on equity of 8.19% and a net margin of 21.26%.The company had revenue of $9.59 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.95 billion. On average, research analysts anticipate that Barclays will post 2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barclays Cuts Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 8th were issued a dividend of $0.1557 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 210.0%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 8th. Barclays’s dividend payout ratio is currently 14.75%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Barclays

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BCS. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Barclays during the second quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Mark Sheptoff Financial Planning LLC purchased a new stake in Barclays in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Elequin Capital LP bought a new stake in shares of Barclays in the 1st quarter worth about $30,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in shares of Barclays in the 3rd quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Salomon & Ludwin LLC raised its position in Barclays by 2,673.6% in the 3rd quarter. Salomon & Ludwin LLC now owns 1,470 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $31,000 after purchasing an additional 1,417 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 3.39% 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.