Financial Advocates Investment Management Takes Position in Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG)

Financial Advocates Investment Management acquired a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) in the second quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm acquired 21,156 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $58,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. First Eagle Investment Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 9.2% during the first quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 4,060,740 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,517,000 after buying an additional 343,753 shares in the last quarter. Ieq Capital LLC grew its stake in Lloyds Banking Group by 94.4% during the 4th quarter. Ieq Capital LLC now owns 41,749 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $100,000 after acquiring an additional 20,270 shares in the last quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC raised its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 166.2% in the 1st quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 47,224 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $122,000 after acquiring an additional 29,486 shares during the last quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. lifted its stake in Lloyds Banking Group by 4.1% in the 4th quarter. First Trust Direct Indexing L.P. now owns 309,779 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $740,000 after purchasing an additional 12,334 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Apollon Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 168.3% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 124,174 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $297,000 after purchasing an additional 77,886 shares during the last quarter. 2.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Lloyds Banking Group Price Performance

Shares of LYG opened at $3.07 on Friday. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $2.95 and its 200 day moving average price is $2.70. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a 12-month low of $1.88 and a 12-month high of $3.14. The company has a current ratio of 1.45, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89. The firm has a market cap of $47.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.07 and a beta of 1.35.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 25th. The financial services provider reported $0.09 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. The business had revenue of $9.55 billion for the quarter. Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 12.40% and a return on equity of 10.34%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.32 earnings per share for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 5th will be given a dividend of $0.0546 per share. This is a positive change from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. This represents a dividend yield of 4.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 5th. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 26.32%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently commented on LYG. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Tuesday, July 30th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft started coverage on Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Thursday, May 9th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock. BNP Paribas raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, July 5th. Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. Finally, Citigroup cut shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, August 5th. Five research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $32.38.

About Lloyds Banking Group

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.