JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) Stock

Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) had its target price raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from GBX 62 ($0.80) to GBX 71 ($0.92) in a research report released on Tuesday, MarketBeat reports. The firm currently has an underweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other research analysts have also issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised their target price on shares of Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 61 ($0.79) to GBX 71 ($0.92) and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, March 6th. Shore Capital reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Thursday, February 20th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have issued a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of GBX 62.40 ($0.81).

Lloyds Banking Group Price Performance

Shares of LON:LLOY opened at GBX 73.86 ($0.96) on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of £44.79 billion, a P/E ratio of 9.34, a P/E/G ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.23. The business has a 50-day moving average of GBX 66.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 59.81. Lloyds Banking Group has a fifty-two week low of GBX 49.42 ($0.64) and a fifty-two week high of GBX 74.46 ($0.96).

Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported GBX 6.30 ($0.08) earnings per share for the quarter. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 11.22% and a net margin of 16.66%. As a group, research analysts expect that Lloyds Banking Group will post 7.3199528 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a GBX 2.11 ($0.03) dividend. This represents a yield of 3.01%. This is a positive change from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous dividend of $1.06. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 10th. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 37.95%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider William Chalmers sold 11,338 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 70 ($0.91), for a total transaction of £7,936.60 ($10,275.25). 0.17% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

About Lloyds Banking Group

We are the largest UK retail and commercial financial services provider with over 25 million customers and a presence in nearly every community.

The Group’s main business activities are retail and commercial banking, general insurance and long-term savings, provided through the largest branch network and digital bank in the UK, with well recognised brands including Lloyds Bank, Halifax, Bank of Scotland and Scottish Widows.

Our shares are quoted on the London and New York stock exchanges and we are one of the largest companies in the FTSE 100 index.