JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) Stock

Key Points

• JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised its price target for Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 78 ($1.05) to GBX 79 ($1.07), maintaining an "underweight" rating on the stock.
• Shore Capital updated its rating to "hold" with a price target of GBX 74 ($1.00), while one analyst rated it as a sell and three as hold.
• Lloyds Banking Group reported a quarterly EPS of GBX 3.80 ($0.05) and has a market capitalization of £47.87 billion, with recent insider buying activity indicating confidence in the stock.

Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY - Free Report) had its price target increased by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from GBX 78 ($1.05) to GBX 79 ($1.06) in a report released on Friday, Marketbeat reports. They currently have an underweight rating on the financial services provider's stock.

Separately, Shore Capital reissued a "hold" rating and set a GBX 74 ($0.99) price objective on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Thursday. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of GBX 67.80 ($0.91).

Lloyds Banking Group Trading Down 1.0%

LLOY stock traded down GBX 0.80 ($0.01) during trading on Friday, reaching GBX 78.24 ($1.05). 72,585,781 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 154,511,672. The firm's 50 day moving average is GBX 76.71 and its 200 day moving average is GBX 70.79. Lloyds Banking Group has a twelve month low of GBX 52.44 ($0.70) and a twelve month high of GBX 80 ($1.07). The firm has a market cap of £47.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.23.

Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 24th. The financial services provider reported GBX 3.80 ($0.05) earnings per share for the quarter. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 11.22% and a net margin of 16.66%. As a group, analysts predict that Lloyds Banking Group will post 7.3199528 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider William Chalmers bought 152,181 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 20th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of GBX 76 ($1.02) per share, with a total value of £115,657.56 ($155,411.93). Also, insider Charlie Nunn purchased 238,593 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated Friday, June 20th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 76 ($1.02) per share, with a total value of £181,330.68 ($243,658.53). Company insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

About Lloyds Banking Group

We are the largest UK retail and commercial financial services provider with over 25 million customers and a presence in nearly every community. The Group's main business activities are retail and commercial banking, general insurance and long-term savings, provided through the largest branch network and digital bank in the UK, with well recognised brands including Lloyds Bank, Halifax, Bank of Scotland and Scottish Widows. Our shares are quoted on the London and New York stock exchanges and we are one of the largest companies in the FTSE 100 index.