Barclays (NYSE:BCS) Upgraded to Buy at Wall Street Zen

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) was upgraded by research analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report issued on Saturday.

Barclays Stock Performance

NYSE:BCS traded up $0.37 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $18.25. The company's stock had a trading volume of 15,538,491 shares, compared to its average volume of 14,968,191. Barclays has a 12-month low of $10.23 and a 12-month high of $18.75. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $17.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $15.60. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.75. The stock has a market cap of $64.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.26, a PEG ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.10.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.61 by $0.04. Barclays had a net margin of 21.27% and a return on equity of 8.04%. The firm had revenue of $10.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $8.37 billion. On average, equities analysts forecast that Barclays will post 2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Barclays

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Bessemer Group Inc. boosted its holdings in Barclays by 1,539.6% in the first quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. now owns 4,509 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $69,000 after acquiring an additional 4,234 shares in the last quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC raised its position in Barclays by 51.0% during the fourth quarter. Neuberger Berman Group LLC now owns 579,964 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $7,708,000 after acquiring an additional 195,825 shares in the last quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. raised its position in Barclays by 14.7% during the fourth quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 3,063,126 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $40,709,000 after acquiring an additional 391,899 shares in the last quarter. National Bank of Canada FI increased its position in shares of Barclays by 77.3% in the fourth quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 835,051 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $11,098,000 after buying an additional 364,182 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Janney Montgomery Scott LLC increased its position in shares of Barclays by 52.0% in the first quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 47,617 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $731,000 after buying an additional 16,293 shares in 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.