Barclays (NYSE:BCS) Lowered to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Barclays (NYSE:BCS) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report published on Thursday morning.

Barclays Stock Up 1.1 %

BCS opened at $15.87 on Thursday. Barclays has a fifty-two week low of $8.37 and a fifty-two week high of $16.02. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.33, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company has a market capitalization of $57.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.62, a P/E/G ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.41. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $14.34 and a 200-day moving average of $13.19.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.19 by $0.15. Barclays had a return on equity of 7.74% and a net margin of 20.81%. On average, equities analysts expect that Barclays will post 2 EPS for the current year.

Barclays Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Stockholders of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a dividend of $0.2737 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, February 28th. This represents a dividend yield of 2.7%. This is an increase from Barclays’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.27. Barclays’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.80%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Lindbrook Capital LLC increased its position in shares of Barclays by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 9,476 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $126,000 after purchasing an additional 674 shares during the period. Covenant Partners LLC increased its position in shares of Barclays by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Covenant Partners LLC now owns 102,166 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $1,358,000 after purchasing an additional 772 shares during the period. Choreo LLC increased its position in shares of Barclays by 1.7% in the fourth quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 46,860 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $623,000 after purchasing an additional 802 shares during the period. Forum Financial Management LP increased its position in shares of Barclays by 1.8% in the fourth quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 48,199 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $641,000 after purchasing an additional 874 shares during the period. Finally, Lake Street Advisors Group LLC grew its position in Barclays by 2.2% in the fourth quarter. Lake Street Advisors Group LLC now owns 40,500 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $538,000 after acquiring an additional 880 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 3.39% of the company’s stock.

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.