Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. Invests $24.70 Million in Barclays PLC $BCS

Key Points

• Ferguson Wellman Capital Management bought a new stake in Barclays during the first quarter, acquiring 1,167,509 shares worth about $24.7 million.
• Barclays stock rose 0.9% to $27.48, near its 12-month high of $28.43, and the company now has a market cap of about $93.7 billion.
• Barclays reported quarterly EPS of $0.76, slightly beating estimates, and analysts currently view the stock as a Moderate Buy overall.

Ferguson Wellman Capital Management Inc. acquired a new stake in Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund acquired 1,167,509 shares of the financial services provider's stock, valued at approximately $24,704,000.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in Barclays during the fourth quarter worth about $141,248,000. Ameriprise Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in Barclays by 793.5% during the 3rd quarter. Ameriprise Financial Inc. now owns 4,777,017 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $99,073,000 after buying an additional 4,242,360 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Barclays by 4.3% in the 4th quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 89,750,069 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $2,284,139,000 after buying an additional 3,722,757 shares during the period. Main Street Research LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Barclays during the third quarter worth $35,035,000. Finally, BNP Paribas Financial Markets raised its stake in shares of Barclays by 7,013.1% in the second quarter. BNP Paribas Financial Markets now owns 1,671,369 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $31,071,000 after acquiring an additional 1,647,872 shares in the last quarter. 3.39% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Barclays Stock Up 0.9%

Shares of BCS traded up $0.24 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $27.48. The company's stock had a trading volume of 3,838,387 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,229,509. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.94, a current ratio of 1.44 and a quick ratio of 1.44. Barclays PLC has a 12-month low of $18.33 and a 12-month high of $28.43. The stock has a market cap of $93.69 billion, a PE ratio of 11.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.47 and a beta of 1.00. The company's 50 day moving average is $25.13 and its 200 day moving average is $24.54.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, April 27th. The financial services provider reported $0.76 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.01. Barclays had a return on equity of 8.12% and a net margin of 21.10%.The firm had revenue of $5.07 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $10.88 billion. Equities analysts anticipate that Barclays PLC will post 2.86 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings cut Barclays from a "buy (b)" rating to a "buy (b-)" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating on shares of Barclays in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley restated an "overweight" rating on shares of Barclays in a research note on Thursday, July 2nd. Berenberg Bank began coverage on shares of Barclays in a report on Wednesday, June 24th. They set a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, Zacks Research downgraded shares of Barclays from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 19th. Five analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Barclays has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy".

About Barclays

Barclays PLC NYSE: BCS is a British multinational bank and financial services company headquartered in London. The firm provides a broad range of banking and financial products to individual, corporate and institutional customers. Its core activities span retail and business banking, credit cards and payments, corporate and investment banking, and wealth and investment management.

In retail and business banking, Barclays offers deposit accounts, mortgages, personal and business loans, and card services.

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