Barclays (NYSE:BCS) Cut to “Buy” at StockNews.com

StockNews.com cut shares of Barclays (NYSE:BCS) from a strong-buy rating to a buy rating in a report released on Friday morning.

BCS has been the topic of a number of other research reports. Kepler Capital Markets initiated coverage on shares of Barclays in a report on Thursday, September 5th. They issued a “buy” rating on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Barclays in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They set a “buy” rating on the stock.

Barclays Stock Performance

Barclays stock opened at $12.97 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $12.57 and its 200-day moving average price is $11.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.67, a quick ratio of 1.35 and a current ratio of 1.35. The stock has a market cap of $46.97 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.82 and a beta of 1.41. Barclays has a fifty-two week low of $7.02 and a fifty-two week high of $13.57.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, October 24th. The financial services provider reported $0.56 EPS for the quarter. The company had revenue of $8.52 billion for the quarter. Barclays had a net margin of 17.83% and a return on equity of 6.30%. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $0.42 EPS. On average, equities research analysts expect that Barclays will post 1.71 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in BCS. Acadian Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in shares of Barclays by 1,362.1% during the second quarter. Acadian Asset Management LLC now owns 19,682,115 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $210,762,000 after purchasing an additional 18,335,937 shares during the last quarter. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in shares of Barclays in the third quarter worth approximately $52,335,000. Natixis Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of Barclays by 286.1% in the third quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 3,565,033 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $43,315,000 after purchasing an additional 2,641,608 shares during the period. Renaissance Technologies LLC boosted its position in shares of Barclays by 190.9% in the second quarter. Renaissance Technologies LLC now owns 3,661,086 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $39,210,000 after purchasing an additional 2,402,500 shares during the period. Finally, Sei Investments Co. boosted its position in shares of Barclays by 118.7% in the second quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 2,709,312 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $29,017,000 after purchasing an additional 1,470,523 shares during the period. 3.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

About Barclays

Barclays PLC provides various financial services in the United Kingdom, Europe, the Americas, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. The company operates through Barclays UK and Barclays International division segments. It offers financial services, such as retail banking, credit cards, wholesale banking, investment banking, wealth management, and investment management services.