Simplicity Wealth LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS)

Simplicity Wealth LLC lowered its stake in shares of Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) by 43.8% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 12,638 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 9,862 shares during the period. Simplicity Wealth LLC’s holdings in Barclays were worth $154,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Acadian Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in Barclays by 1,362.1% during the 2nd quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 19,682,115 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $210,762,000 after purchasing an additional 18,335,937 shares in the last quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in shares of Barclays by 190.9% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 3,661,086 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $39,210,000 after acquiring an additional 2,402,500 shares during the period. National Bank of Canada FI grew its stake in Barclays by 6,028.3% during the first quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,718,379 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $16,239,000 after acquiring an additional 1,690,339 shares in the last quarter. Sei Investments Co. increased its holdings in Barclays by 118.7% during the 2nd quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 2,709,312 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,017,000 after acquiring an additional 1,470,523 shares during the period. Finally, Duquesne Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Barclays by 97.4% during the 2nd quarter. Duquesne Family Office LLC now owns 2,075,455 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $22,228,000 after acquiring an additional 1,024,100 shares during the period. 3.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently weighed in on BCS. Kepler Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Barclays in a report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. StockNews.com raised Barclays from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group began coverage on Barclays in a report on Tuesday, October 8th. They set a “buy” rating for the company. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Barclays presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Barclays Stock Performance

NYSE BCS opened at $12.35 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $45.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.68 and a beta of 1.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.98, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a current ratio of 1.39. Barclays PLC has a 52-week low of $6.23 and a 52-week high of $12.49. The company has a fifty day moving average of $11.87 and a 200-day moving average of $11.12.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, August 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.42 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.40 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $7.98 billion during the quarter. Barclays had a return on equity of 5.94% and a net margin of 16.83%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.43 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Barclays PLC will post 1.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barclays Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which was paid on Friday, September 20th. Stockholders of record on Friday, August 16th were issued a $0.2684 dividend. This represents a dividend yield of 3.6%. This is a positive change from Barclays’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date was Friday, August 16th. Barclays’s payout ratio is presently 21.64%.

About Barclays

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.