Barclays (LON:BARC) Hits New 52-Week High - Time to Buy?

Shares of Barclays PLC (LON:BARC - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as GBX 319.05 ($4.23) and last traded at GBX 316.75 ($4.20), with a volume of 822566188 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 307.20 ($4.08).

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on BARC shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of Barclays from GBX 370 ($4.91) to GBX 410 ($5.44) and gave the stock a "top pick" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 25th. Shore Capital reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Barclays in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Citigroup upped their price target on Barclays from GBX 320 ($4.25) to GBX 350 ($4.64) and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 6th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reiterated a "buy" rating and issued a GBX 350 ($4.64) price objective on shares of Barclays in a research note on Monday, February 24th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of GBX 329.17 ($4.37).

Barclays Price Performance

The stock has a market cap of £46.28 billion, a PE ratio of 9.47, a PEG ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.36. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of GBX 287.27 and a 200-day simple moving average of GBX 279.53.

Barclays (LON:BARC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported GBX 13 ($0.17) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter. Barclays had a net margin of 19.54% and a return on equity of 6.97%. On average, equities analysts expect that Barclays PLC will post 39.1062802 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Activity at Barclays

In other Barclays news, insider C.S. Venkatakrishnan sold 185,862 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 292 ($3.87), for a total transaction of £542,717.04 ($719,974.85). Also, insider Robert Berry bought 3,028 shares of the company's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 14th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of GBX 294 ($3.90) per share, with a total value of £8,902.32 ($11,809.92). Corporate insiders own 1.47% 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.