Earnest Partners LLC Decreases Stock Position in Barclays PLC $BCS

Key Points

• Earnest Partners LLC reduced its stake in Barclays PLC by 12.2%, owning 141,523 shares worth $2,174,000 after selling 19,585 shares in the first quarter.
• Several institutional investors significantly increased their holdings during recent quarters, with Bank of America boosting its position by 485.0%, among others.
• Analysts have issued mixed ratings for Barclays, with five holding a "Buy" rating and one a "Hold," leading to a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

Earnest Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS - Free Report) by 12.2% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 141,523 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 19,585 shares during the quarter. Earnest Partners LLC's holdings in Barclays were worth $2,174,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of BCS. First Trust Advisors LP acquired a new position in shares of Barclays in the 4th quarter valued at $1,097,000. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC increased its holdings in shares of Barclays by 4.4% in the 4th quarter. Integrated Wealth Concepts LLC now owns 36,533 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $486,000 after acquiring an additional 1,552 shares during the period. Voya Investment Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Barclays by 104.9% in the 4th quarter. Voya Investment Management LLC now owns 167,961 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,232,000 after acquiring an additional 86,006 shares during the period. Northern Trust Corp increased its holdings in shares of Barclays by 20.5% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,059,544 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $80,531,000 after acquiring an additional 1,029,401 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC increased its holdings in shares of Barclays by 62.3% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 381,369 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $5,068,000 after acquiring an additional 146,406 shares during the period. 3.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Barclays Price Performance

Shares of NYSE BCS traded down $0.40 during trading on Friday, hitting $19.64. 8,558,544 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 10,665,398. The company has a market cap of $69.32 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.05, a PEG ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.14. Barclays PLC has a 1 year low of $11.22 and a 1 year high of $20.58. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $19.29 and its 200 day moving average price is $17.18. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.70, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.62 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.12. The company had revenue of $9.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.06 billion. Barclays had a net margin of 22.11% and a return on equity of 8.49%. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Barclays PLC will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Barclays Cuts Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 16th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 8th will be given a dividend of $0.1557 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 210.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, August 8th. Barclays's payout ratio is presently 14.29%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on BCS shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of Barclays from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Sunday, July 13th. Citigroup lowered shares of Barclays from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "overweight" rating on shares of Barclays in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Barclays in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Barclays currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

Barclays Company Profile

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.