Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) Reaches New 52-Week High - Here's Why

Key Points

• Lloyds Banking Group shares reached a new 52-week high of GBX 83.94 ($1.14) during trading, with a significant volume of 273,183,063 shares exchanged.
• Analysts have varied opinions on the stock, with Citigroup setting a target price of GBX 77 ($1.05) while Royal Bank of Canada upgraded its rating with a target price of GBX 95 ($1.29).
• Corporate insiders have been actively purchasing shares, with notable transactions totaling over £32 million in the last three months.

Shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (LON:LLOY - Get Free Report) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Thursday . The company traded as high as GBX 83.94 ($1.14) and last traded at GBX 83.94 ($1.14), with a volume of 273183063 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 83.44 ($1.13).

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have commented on the company. Citigroup lifted their target price on Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 75 ($1.02) to GBX 77 ($1.05) and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Shore Capital restated a "hold" rating and issued a GBX 74 ($1.00) target price on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Thursday, July 24th. Royal Bank Of Canada upgraded Lloyds Banking Group to an "outperform" rating and set a GBX 95 ($1.29) target price for the company in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Lloyds Banking Group to a "neutral" rating and lifted their target price for the company from GBX 79 ($1.07) to GBX 85 ($1.15) in a research note on Monday, August 4th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and one has issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Lloyds Banking Group currently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of GBX 77.20 ($1.05).

Lloyds Banking Group Trading Up 0.5%

The firm's fifty day moving average price is GBX 77.47 and its 200 day moving average price is GBX 72.62. The firm has a market capitalization of £50.86 billion, a PE ratio of 10.61, a PEG 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) EPS for the quarter. Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 16.66% and a return on equity of 11.22%. As a group, research analysts expect that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 7.3199528 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Chris Vogelzang purchased 30,500 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, August 6th. The stock was bought at an average cost of GBX 80 ($1.09) per share, for a total transaction of £24,400 ($33,134.17). Also, insider William Chalmers purchased 152,181 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Friday, June 20th. The shares were purchased at an average price of GBX 76 ($1.03) per share, with a total value of £115,657.56 ($157,058.07). Over the last three months, insiders acquired 421,274 shares of company stock worth $32,138,824. Corporate insiders own 0.17% of the company's stock.

Lloyds Banking Group Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.