Analysts Set Lloyds Banking Group plc (LON:LLOY) Target Price at GBX 55.33

Lloyds Banking Group plc (LON:LLOY) has been given a consensus recommendation of “Hold” by the nine analysts that are currently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, three have assigned a hold recommendation and five have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is GBX 55.33 ($0.70).

A number of equities research analysts have weighed in on LLOY shares. Shore Capital reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a GBX 59 ($0.74) target price on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a report on Friday, February 16th. Berenberg Bank boosted their price target on Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 55 ($0.69) to GBX 58 ($0.73) and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 22nd. Peel Hunt started coverage on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Friday, April 19th. They issued a “hold” rating and a GBX 55 ($0.69) price objective on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of Lloyds Banking Group from GBX 41 ($0.52) to GBX 45 ($0.57) and gave the company an “underweight” rating in a research report on Tuesday, April 9th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

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

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Up 1.9 %

LLOY opened at GBX 53.19 ($0.67) on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of £33.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 745.43, a PEG ratio of 1.77 and a beta of 1.24. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of GBX 50.68 and a 200-day moving average price of GBX 46.25. Lloyds Banking Group has a twelve month low of GBX 39.42 ($0.50) and a twelve month high of GBX 54.28 ($0.68).

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, May 21st. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 11th will be paid a dividend of GBX 1.84 ($0.02) per share. This is a boost from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous dividend of $0.92. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 11th. This represents a yield of 4.25%. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 4,285.71%.

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.