Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) Reaches New 1-Year High - Should You Buy?

Shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Tuesday . The stock traded as high as $4.00 and last traded at $3.97, with a volume of 23720086 shares traded. The stock had previously closed at $3.94.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have issued reports on LYG shares. Hsbc Global Res raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. HSBC upgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 1st. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, four have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy".

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Down 4.4 %

The company has a market cap of $57.12 billion, a PE ratio of 11.44 and a beta of 0.95. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $3.72 and a 200-day moving average of $3.17.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, May 7th. The financial services provider reported $0.11 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.09 by $0.02. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 8.46% and a net margin of 11.45%. Research analysts expect that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.27 EPS for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be given a dividend of $0.1035 per share. This is a positive change from Lloyds Banking Group's previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a dividend yield of 4%. Lloyds Banking Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 60.61%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 58.5% during the third quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,659,629 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $20,778,000 after purchasing an additional 2,456,914 shares in the last quarter. May Hill Capital LLC purchased a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $227,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake in Lloyds Banking Group by 6.7% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 1,126,422 shares of the financial services provider's stock valued at $3,064,000 after buying an additional 70,838 shares in the last quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC lifted its stake in Lloyds Banking Group by 15.9% in the 4th quarter. Park Avenue Securities LLC now owns 288,877 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $786,000 after purchasing an additional 39,685 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Quantbot Technologies LP lifted its stake in Lloyds Banking Group by 389.2% in the 4th quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP now owns 133,398 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $363,000 after purchasing an additional 106,128 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.15% of the company's stock.

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.