Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) Downgraded by Wall Street Zen to Hold

Key Points

• Wall Street Zen downgraded Lloyds Banking Group to “Hold” from “Buy,” although the broader analyst consensus remains “Moderate Buy,” with eight Buy ratings and three Holds.
• Lloyds shares opened at $5.78, compared with a 52-week range of $4.42 to $6.34. The company’s latest quarterly results missed expectations, reporting $0.13 in EPS versus a $0.14 estimate and revenue of $6.57 billion versus $6.86 billion expected.
• Institutional investors increased their holdings during the second quarter, but hedge funds and other institutions collectively own only 2.15% of the stock.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG - Get Free Report) was downgraded by analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report released on Sunday, Wall Street Zen reports.

LYG has been the topic of several other reports. Bank of America upgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a "neutral" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Berenberg Bank started coverage on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Wednesday, June 24th. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Finally, Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Wednesday, September 2nd. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Lloyds Banking Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

LYG opened at $5.78 on Friday. Lloyds Banking Group has a 1-year low of $4.42 and a 1-year high of $6.34. The stock has a market cap of $83.73 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.43, a P/E/G ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 0.87. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $6.01 and its 200 day simple moving average is $5.64. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 1.52 and a quick ratio of 0.56.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.14 by ($0.01). Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 24.97%.The firm had revenue of $6.57 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.86 billion. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Lloyds Banking Group will post 0.55 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Lloyds Banking Group

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. QRG Capital Management Inc. grew its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 12.0% in the 2nd quarter. QRG Capital Management Inc. now owns 1,731,571 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $10,095,000 after buying an additional 185,523 shares during the period. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 9.0% in the second quarter. Envestnet Portfolio Solutions Inc. now owns 53,421 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $311,000 after acquiring an additional 4,424 shares during the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 2.9% in the second quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 12,564,633 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $73,250,000 after acquiring an additional 351,626 shares during the last quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP grew its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 66.0% in the second quarter. Engineers Gate Manager LP now owns 394,145 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,298,000 after purchasing an additional 156,739 shares during the period. Finally, RFG Advisory LLC acquired a new position in Lloyds Banking Group during the second quarter worth approximately $82,000. 2.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Lloyds Banking Group

Lloyds Banking Group plc is a major United Kingdom financial services provider whose shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol LYG. The group serves individuals, families, small businesses and larger commercial customers through a range of banking, lending, insurance, investment and wealth-management services.

Its principal brands include Lloyds Bank, Halifax, Bank of Scotland and Scottish Widows. Products and services include current and savings accounts, mortgages, personal loans, credit cards, business banking, commercial lending, investment products, pensions and life insurance.

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