HighTower Advisors LLC Raises Stake in Barclays PLC $BCS

Key Points

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HighTower Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS - Free Report) by 44.9% in the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 534,544 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 165,655 shares during the period. HighTower Advisors LLC's holdings in Barclays were worth $8,211,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of BCS. Financial Management Professionals Inc. bought a new position in shares of Barclays in the 1st quarter worth about $29,000. Wealthquest Corp bought a new position in shares of Barclays in the 1st quarter worth about $32,000. Zions Bancorporation National Association UT bought a new position in shares of Barclays in the 1st quarter worth about $40,000. Wayfinding Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of Barclays in the 1st quarter worth about $46,000. Finally, Bessemer Group Inc. increased its stake in shares of Barclays by 1,539.6% in the 1st 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. 3.39% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Barclays Stock Performance

Shares of BCS traded up $0.2350 on Friday, reaching $20.4550. The company's stock had a trading volume of 8,055,060 shares, compared to its average volume of 13,965,366. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.70, a current ratio of 1.38 and a quick ratio of 1.38. The stock has a market capitalization of $72.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.43, a PEG ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 1.15. The stock's 50 day simple moving average is $19.04 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $16.98. Barclays PLC has a 12-month low of $11.22 and a 12-month high of $20.58.

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

Barclays Cuts Dividend

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

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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