Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) Upgraded at StockNews.com

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

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

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

Shares of Lloyds Banking Group stock traded up $0.03 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $4.00. The company had a trading volume of 23,289,264 shares, compared to its average volume of 17,327,585. The company has a 50 day moving average of $3.75 and a 200 day moving average of $3.22. The stock has a market capitalization 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 posted its quarterly 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. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 8.46% and a net margin of 11.45%. The firm had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.78 billion. Equities research analysts forecast that Lloyds Banking Group will post 0.27 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lloyds Banking Group

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brookstone Capital Management increased its position in Lloyds Banking Group by 29.0% in the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 48,910 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $133,000 after buying an additional 10,981 shares in the last quarter. Cooper Financial Group increased its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 33.2% in the 4th quarter. Cooper Financial Group now owns 22,448 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $61,000 after acquiring an additional 5,597 shares in the last quarter. Traveka Wealth LLC bought a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $76,000. Wallace Advisory Group LLC raised its stake in Lloyds Banking Group by 93.3% during the 4th quarter. Wallace Advisory Group LLC now owns 40,709 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $111,000 after acquiring an additional 19,654 shares during the period. Finally, Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 15.9% during the fourth quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 288,877 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $786,000 after purchasing an additional 39,685 shares in the last quarter. 2.15% of the stock is currently 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.