Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) Price Target Raised to GBX 71

Lloyds Banking Group (LON:LLOY) had its price objective hoisted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from GBX 62 ($0.80) to GBX 71 ($0.92) in a research report report published on Tuesday morning, Marketbeat.com reports. They currently have an underweight rating on the financial services provider’s stock.

A number of other analysts have also commented on the stock. Citigroup upped their price objective 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 note on Thursday, February 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, four have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of GBX 62.40 ($0.81).

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Performance

Lloyds Banking Group stock opened at GBX 73.86 ($0.96) on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of £44.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.34, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.84 and a beta of 1.23. Lloyds Banking Group has a 1 year low of GBX 49.42 ($0.64) and a 1 year high of GBX 74.46 ($0.96). The firm’s 50 day moving average price is GBX 66.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is GBX 59.81.

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

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 20th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 10th will be given a dividend of GBX 2.11 ($0.03) per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 10th. This is an increase from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous dividend of $1.06. This represents a yield of 3.01%. Lloyds Banking Group’s payout ratio is presently 37.95%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Lloyds Banking Group

In other Lloyds Banking Group news, insider William Chalmers sold 11,338 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, March 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of GBX 70 ($0.91), for a total value of £7,936.60 ($10,275.25). Company insiders own 0.17% of the company’s stock.

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.