Barclays (NYSE:BCS) Reaches New 1-Year High - What's Next?

Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) shares hit a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Tuesday . The company traded as high as $18.23 and last traded at $18.16, with a volume of 342299 shares changing hands. The stock had previously closed at $17.60.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Barclays from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 27th. BNP Paribas raised shares of Barclays from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th.

Barclays Stock Up 1.5%

The firm has a market cap of $66.20 billion, a PE ratio of 9.44, a P/E/G ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.11. The company has a quick ratio of 1.39, a current ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.75. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $17.09 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $15.40.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $10.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.37 billion. Barclays had a net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 8.04%. Analysts expect that Barclays PLC will post 2 earnings per share for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Barclays

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Acadian Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Barclays by 37.6% during the first quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 33,607,068 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $516,163,000 after buying an additional 9,188,263 shares during the period. Natixis Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of Barclays by 78.7% in the 1st quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 8,892,766 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $136,593,000 after acquiring an additional 3,917,785 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE boosted its holdings in Barclays by 485.0% during the 4th quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,680,869 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $88,789,000 after acquiring an additional 5,538,912 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp grew its position in Barclays by 20.5% during the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,059,544 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $80,531,000 after acquiring an additional 1,029,401 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Causeway Capital Management LLC grew its position in Barclays by 8.9% during the 4th quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC now owns 5,930,467 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $78,816,000 after acquiring an additional 484,497 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.