StockNews.com Upgrades Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) to Hold

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG - Get Free Report) was upgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a note issued to investors on Tuesday.

Several other research analysts have also recently weighed in on the stock. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. HSBC raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, March 11th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lloyds Banking Group presently has a consensus rating of "Hold".

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Up 0.6%

Shares of NYSE LYG traded up $0.03 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $4.00. The stock had a trading volume of 23,289,264 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,402,907. The business's 50 day moving average is $3.76 and its 200-day moving average is $3.24. The company has a market cap of $60.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.11 and a beta of 0.97. Lloyds Banking Group has a 52 week low of $2.56 and a 52 week high of $4.01.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.03. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.78 billion. Lloyds Banking Group had a net margin of 11.45% and a return on equity of 8.46%. As a group, analysts expect that Lloyds Banking Group will post 0.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Trading of Lloyds Banking Group

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Earned Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the first quarter worth $38,000. Crux Wealth Advisors purchased a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. SYM FINANCIAL Corp purchased a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the first quarter worth $40,000. Advisor Resource Council purchased a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the first quarter worth $37,000. Finally, Rainey & Randall Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the first quarter worth $41,000. 2.15% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Lloyds Banking Group

Lloyds Banking Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides a range of banking and financial services in the United Kingdom and internationally. It operates in three segments: Retail; Commercial Banking; and Insurance, Pensions and Investments. The Retail segment offers a range of financial service products, including current accounts, savings, mortgages, motor finance, unsecured loans, leasing solutions, and credit cards to personal customers.