Quantbot Technologies LP Buys 106,128 Shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG)

Quantbot Technologies LP grew its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) by 389.2% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 133,398 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after purchasing an additional 106,128 shares during the quarter. Quantbot Technologies LP’s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $363,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Apollon Wealth Management LLC raised its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 2.8% during the 4th quarter. Apollon Wealth Management LLC now owns 122,641 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $334,000 after buying an additional 3,346 shares during the last quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance increased its position in Lloyds Banking Group by 4.8% during the 4th quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance now owns 75,049 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $204,000 after purchasing an additional 3,420 shares during the period. Brio Consultants LLC lifted its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 30.2% in the 4th quarter. Brio Consultants LLC now owns 16,735 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $46,000 after purchasing an additional 3,880 shares during the period. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. increased its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 24.3% during the fourth quarter. Retirement Planning Co of New England Inc. now owns 20,552 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after buying an additional 4,022 shares during the period. Finally, Fielder Capital Group LLC raised its stake in Lloyds Banking Group by 7.7% in the fourth quarter. Fielder Capital Group LLC now owns 60,993 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $166,000 after buying an additional 4,366 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Down 1.2 %

NYSE:LYG opened at $3.84 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $58.25 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.62 and a beta of 1.25. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $3.42 and its 200-day moving average price is $3.06. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a 52 week low of $2.42 and a 52 week high of $3.91.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $9.46 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.76 billion. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 8.46% and a net margin of 11.45%. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.27 earnings per share for the current year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, April 11th will be paid a dividend of $0.1035 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, April 11th. This represents a yield of 4%. This is a boost from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.61%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts have weighed in on LYG shares. Hsbc Global Res upgraded Lloyds Banking Group to a “strong-buy” rating in a report on Thursday, March 20th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut Lloyds Banking Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 11th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised Lloyds Banking Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, March 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $2.75.

About Lloyds Banking Group

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.