Blue Trust Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS)

Blue Trust Inc. boosted its position in Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS - Free Report) by 88.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 48,078 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 22,539 shares during the quarter. Blue Trust Inc.'s holdings in Barclays were worth $738,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Barclays in the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. TD Private Client Wealth LLC raised its stake in Barclays by 135.5% during the fourth quarter. TD Private Client Wealth LLC now owns 2,916 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $39,000 after buying an additional 1,678 shares during the last quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Barclays by 36.8% in the fourth quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 3,762 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $50,000 after acquiring an additional 1,011 shares in the last quarter. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in shares of Barclays in the fourth quarter worth $71,000. Finally, Global Retirement Partners LLC increased its holdings in shares of Barclays by 290.8% during the fourth quarter. Global Retirement Partners LLC now owns 6,413 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $85,000 after acquiring an additional 4,772 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 3.39% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

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

Barclays Stock Down 0.6%

BCS traded down $0.11 during trading on Friday, hitting $17.56. 14,488,719 shares of the company's stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 14,734,675. The stock has a market capitalization of $62.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 8.91, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.11. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $16.81 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $15.28. Barclays PLC has a 12-month low of $10.23 and a 12-month high of $18.23. The company has a current ratio of 1.39, a quick ratio of 1.39 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.75.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $10.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $8.37 billion. Barclays had a return on equity of 8.04% and a net margin of 21.27%. Analysts predict that Barclays PLC will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

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.