António Simões Sells 197,279 Shares of Legal & General Group Plc (LON:LGEN) Stock

Legal & General Group Plc (LON:LGEN) insider António Simões sold 197,279 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, March 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 244 ($3.16), for a total transaction of £481,360.76 ($623,201.40).

Legal & General Group Price Performance

Legal & General Group stock opened at GBX 243.20 ($3.15) on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of £14.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 44.90, a PEG ratio of 2.34 and a beta of 1.31. Legal & General Group Plc has a one year low of GBX 211.40 ($2.74) and a one year high of GBX 266.20 ($3.45). The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 155.18, a current ratio of 1.50 and a quick ratio of 0.50. The business has a fifty day moving average price of GBX 240.54 and a 200-day moving average price of GBX 230.22.

Legal & General Group (LON:LGEN) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, March 12th. The financial services provider reported GBX 2.89 ($0.04) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Legal & General Group had a net margin of 0.67% and a return on equity of 7.79%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Legal & General Group Plc will post 24.2376446 EPS for the current year.

Legal & General Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, June 5th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 24th will be given a dividend of GBX 15.36 ($0.20) per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 24th. This represents a dividend yield of 6.18%. This is a boost from Legal & General Group’s previous dividend of $6.00. Legal & General Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 387.68%.

Legal & General Group announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Wednesday, March 12th that permits the company to buyback 0 outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the financial services provider to reacquire shares of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LGEN has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of Legal & General Group from GBX 290 ($3.75) to GBX 295 ($3.82) and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Berenberg Bank reiterated a “buy” rating and set a GBX 265 ($3.43) price target on shares of Legal & General Group in a report on Monday, February 24th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reissued a “top pick” rating on shares of Legal & General Group in a research report on Friday, December 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, two have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of GBX 267 ($3.46).

About Legal & General Group

Legal & General Group Plc provides various insurance products and services in the United Kingdom, the United States, and internationally. It operates in Legal & General Retirement Institutional (LGRI), Legal & General Investment Management (LGIM), Legal & General Capital (LGC), and Retail segments.