Causeway Capital Management LLC Trims Stock Holdings in Barclays PLC $BCS

Key Points

• Causeway Capital Management LLC has reduced its holdings in Barclays PLC by 23.9%, now owning approximately 4.5 million shares worth about $69.3 million.
• Several other institutional investors have increased their stakes in Barclays, with Freedom Investment Management Inc. growing its holdings by 177.5%.
• Barclays recently reported a quarterly EPS of $0.62, exceeding analysts' expectations, and announced a semi-annual dividend of $0.1557 per share.

Causeway Capital Management LLC lowered its stake in Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS - Free Report) by 23.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,511,942 shares of the financial services provider's stock after selling 1,418,525 shares during the period. Barclays comprises 1.4% of Causeway Capital Management LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position. Causeway Capital Management LLC owned approximately 0.13% of Barclays worth $69,303,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Ballentine Partners LLC raised its position in Barclays by 2.2% in the 1st quarter. Ballentine Partners LLC now owns 31,547 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $485,000 after purchasing an additional 668 shares in the last quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. raised its position in Barclays by 2.1% in the 1st quarter. D Orazio & Associates Inc. now owns 36,873 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $566,000 after purchasing an additional 759 shares in the last quarter. Covenant Partners LLC raised its position in shares of Barclays by 0.8% during the 4th quarter. Covenant Partners LLC now owns 102,166 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $1,358,000 after acquiring an additional 772 shares in the last quarter. Forum Financial Management LP raised its position in shares of Barclays by 1.8% during the 4th quarter. Forum Financial Management LP now owns 48,199 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $641,000 after acquiring an additional 874 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. raised its position in shares of Barclays by 3.0% during the 1st quarter. Pacer Advisors Inc. now owns 31,540 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $484,000 after acquiring an additional 909 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 3.39% of the company's stock.

Barclays Stock Performance

Shares of BCS stock traded down $0.40 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $19.64. The company had a trading volume of 8,558,544 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,063,931. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $19.29 and its 200 day simple moving average is $17.16. Barclays PLC has a 52-week low of $11.22 and a 52-week high of $20.58. The stock 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 1.15. 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 posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported $0.62 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.12. Barclays had a return on equity of 8.49% and a net margin of 22.11%.The firm had revenue of $9.58 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $7.06 billion. Research analysts anticipate that Barclays PLC will post 2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Barclays Cuts Dividend

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BCS has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Wall Street Zen lowered Barclays from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, July 13th. Citigroup lowered Barclays from a "buy" rating to a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an "outperform" rating on shares of Barclays in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reaffirmed an "overweight" rating on shares of Barclays in a research report on Wednesday, July 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

Barclays 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.