Lloyds Banking Group PLC $LYG Shares Sold by TD Waterhouse Canada Inc.

TD Waterhouse Canada Inc. reduced its stake in Lloyds Banking Group PLC (NYSE:LYG) by 15.1% during the 2nd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,494,395 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 266,231 shares during the period. TD Waterhouse Canada Inc.’s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $8,837,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LYG. WCM Investment Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $128,228,000. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC raised its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 2,413.7% in the 1st quarter. Janney Montgomery Scott LLC now owns 3,113,464 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $15,661,000 after acquiring an additional 2,989,604 shares during the last quarter. UBS Group AG lifted its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 53.9% during the 3rd quarter. UBS Group AG now owns 6,614,695 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $30,031,000 after purchasing an additional 2,317,927 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC lifted its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 386.4% during the 1st quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 2,528,180 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $12,717,000 after purchasing an additional 2,008,380 shares during the period. Finally, Jane Street Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 178.3% during the second quarter. Jane Street Group LLC now owns 2,261,115 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $9,610,000 after purchasing an additional 1,448,691 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts recently commented on the company. Weiss Ratings upgraded Lloyds Banking Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research note on Friday, August 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut Lloyds Banking Group from a “moderate buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Wednesday. Bank of America raised shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 1st. Finally, Berenberg Bank initiated coverage on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Wednesday, June 24th. They set a “hold” rating for the company. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy”.

Lloyds Banking Group Price Performance

LYG stock opened at $6.07 on Friday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $6.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $5.61. Lloyds Banking Group PLC has a 12-month low of $4.31 and a 12-month high of $6.34. The company has a current ratio of 1.52, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12. The company has a market cap of $88.24 billion, a PE ratio of 14.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 0.87.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.13 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.14 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $6.57 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.86 billion. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 10.94% and a net margin of 24.97%. As a group, research analysts predict that Lloyds Banking Group PLC will post 0.55 EPS for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Cuts Dividend

The firm also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Investors of record on Monday, August 10th will be issued a $0.084 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 10th. This represents a yield of 273.0%. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.21%.

Lloyds Banking Group Profile

Lloyds Banking Group plc is a UK-based banking and financial services company that provides a broad range of retail, commercial and insurance products. Its principal consumer-facing brands include Lloyds Bank, Halifax and Bank of Scotland, through which it offers current accounts, savings, mortgages, credit cards and personal loans. The group also delivers services to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and larger corporate clients, supplying business accounts, lending, payments and cash-management solutions.

In addition to core banking, Lloyds operates a significant wealth and insurance arm under the Scottish Widows brand, offering life insurance, pensions, investment and retirement planning products.