Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) Shares Gap Down - Here's What Happened

Shares of Lloyds Banking Group PLC (NYSE:LYG - Get Free Report) gapped down before the market opened on Wednesday . The stock had previously closed at $4.23, but opened at $4.04. Lloyds Banking Group shares last traded at $4.00, with a volume of 4,306,580 shares.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

LYG has been the topic of several research reports. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Lloyds Banking Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Thursday, March 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, May 13th. HSBC upgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Morgan Stanley upgraded Lloyds Banking Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lloyds Banking Group currently has an average rating of "Hold".

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Down 4.7%

The company's 50 day simple moving average is $4.09 and its 200-day simple moving average is $3.56. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.62, a quick ratio of 0.53 and a current ratio of 0.53. The firm has a market capitalization of $60.69 billion, a PE ratio of 11.51, a PEG ratio of 0.89 and a beta of 0.99.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, May 1st. The financial services provider reported $0.11 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.08 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $5.91 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.78 billion. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 8.62% and a net margin of 14.39%. On average, analysts forecast that Lloyds Banking Group PLC will post 0.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of LYG. Crux Wealth Advisors bought a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Focus Partners Wealth purchased a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter worth about $32,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Finally, Jackson Thornton Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.15% of the company's stock.

Lloyds Banking Group Company Profile

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.