Northern Trust Corp Raises Stake in Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG)

Northern Trust Corp grew its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG - Free Report) by 34.7% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 15,604,325 shares of the financial services provider's stock after purchasing an additional 4,021,039 shares during the quarter. Northern Trust Corp owned approximately 0.10% of Lloyds Banking Group worth $42,444,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. World Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in Lloyds Banking Group during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $64,000. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 58.5% in the 3rd quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 6,659,629 shares of the financial services provider's stock worth $20,778,000 after buying an additional 2,456,914 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management lifted its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 29.0% in the 4th 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 during the period. Cooper Financial Group lifted 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 buying an additional 5,597 shares during the period. Finally, Traveka Wealth LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $76,000. 2.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

LYG stock traded up $0.06 during midday trading on Wednesday, reaching $3.97. 14,899,634 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 17,135,542. The business has a 50 day moving average of $3.74 and a 200-day moving average of $3.21. The firm has a market capitalization of $59.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.02 and a beta of 0.97. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a 52-week low of $2.56 and a 52-week high of $4.00.

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 for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.08 by $0.03. The business 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 8.46% and a net margin of 11.45%. Research analysts anticipate that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a dividend of $0.1035 per share. This is an increase 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 payout ratio is 57.14%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on LYG. Hsbc Global Res raised Lloyds Banking Group to a "strong-buy" rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Morgan Stanley upgraded Lloyds Banking Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 4th. StockNews.com upgraded Lloyds Banking Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday. HSBC raised Lloyds Banking Group from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Tuesday, April 1st. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lowered Lloyds Banking Group from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 11th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have issued a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Lloyds Banking Group presently has an average rating of "Hold".

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.