Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) Sets New 52-Week High at $54.38

Lloyds Banking Group plc (LON:LLOY) reached a new 52-week high during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as GBX 54.38 ($0.68) and last traded at GBX 54.02 ($0.68), with a volume of 892448125 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at GBX 53.72 ($0.67).

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on LLOY shares. Shore Capital reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 59 ($0.74) price target on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Friday, February 16th. Peel Hunt began coverage on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Friday, April 19th. They set a “hold” rating and a GBX 55 ($0.69) price objective for the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Lloyds Banking Group to a “market perform” rating and set a GBX 50 ($0.63) target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price objective on Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 41 ($0.52) to GBX 45 ($0.57) and gave the stock an “underweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, April 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, three have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of GBX 55.33 ($0.70).

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

The business has a fifty day moving average of GBX 50.82 and a two-hundred day moving average of GBX 46.33. The firm has a market capitalization of £33.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 770.00, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.24.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 11th will be issued a GBX 1.84 ($0.02) dividend. This is an increase from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous dividend of $0.92. This represents a dividend yield of 4.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 11th. Lloyds Banking Group’s payout ratio is currently 4,285.71%.

Insider Transactions at Lloyds Banking Group

In related news, insider William Chalmers purchased 128,118 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The shares were acquired at an average price of GBX 52 ($0.65) per share, for a total transaction of £66,621.36 ($83,695.18). In other news, insider Robin Budenberg bought 1,000,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 23rd. The stock was bought at an average price of GBX 45 ($0.57) per share, with a total value of £450,000 ($565,326.63). Also, insider William Chalmers purchased 128,118 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, March 25th. The stock was acquired at an average price of GBX 52 ($0.65) per share, for a total transaction of £66,621.36 ($83,695.18). 0.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.