Earnest Partners LLC Sells 19,678 Shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG)

Earnest Partners LLC lessened its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) by 23.9% during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 62,826 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 19,678 shares during the quarter. Earnest Partners LLC’s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $172,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Exencial Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Transcend Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the 2nd quarter worth $28,000. Interchange Capital Partners LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the second quarter worth $28,000. Warren Street Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Finally, Intergy Private Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the second quarter worth about $29,000. 2.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

LYG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Kepler Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. They issued a “hold” rating on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada cut shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 26th. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Tuesday, July 30th. BNP Paribas upgraded Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 5th. Finally, Citigroup cut Lloyds Banking Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $2.75.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Down 0.9 %

Shares of LYG stock opened at $3.14 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.89, a current ratio of 1.45 and a quick ratio of 1.48. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a one year low of $1.88 and a one year high of $3.18. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $3.01 and its 200-day moving average price is $2.81. The company has a market capitalization of $49.08 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.26 and a beta of 1.35.

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

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 5th were given a dividend of $0.0546 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, August 5th. This represents a dividend yield of 4.4%. This is a boost from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 26.32%.

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.