Barclays (LON:BARC) Sets New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Barclays PLC (LON:BARC) hit a new 52-week high during trading on Monday . The company traded as high as GBX 365.80 ($4.89) and last traded at GBX 365.50 ($4.88), with a volume of 74191148 shares. The stock had previously closed at GBX 360.50 ($4.81).

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

BARC has been the topic of several research analyst reports. Citigroup cut Barclays to a “neutral” rating and lifted their target price for the company from GBX 360 ($4.81) to GBX 366 ($4.89) in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Shore Capital raised their price target on shares of Barclays from GBX 395 ($5.28) to GBX 410 ($5.48) and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Barclays in a research note on Wednesday. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on shares of Barclays from GBX 340 ($4.54) to GBX 355 ($4.74) and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Barclays presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of GBX 378.20 ($5.05).

Barclays Trading Up 0.1%

The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of GBX 334.29 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of GBX 307.29. The company has a market capitalization of £53.36 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.92, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.15 and a beta of 1.36.

Barclays (LON:BARC) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 29th. The financial services provider reported GBX 11.70 ($0.16) EPS for the quarter. Barclays had a return on equity of 6.97% and a net margin of 19.54%. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Barclays PLC will post 39.1062802 earnings per share for the current year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Barclays news, insider Anna Cross acquired 27,898 shares of Barclays stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of GBX 326 ($4.35) per share, with a total value of £90,947.48 ($121,457.64). Also, insider C.S. Venkatakrishnan acquired 44,562 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, June 20th. The stock was acquired at an average price of GBX 326 ($4.35) per share, with a total value of £145,272.12 ($194,006.57). 1.47% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Barclays Company Profile

Barclays PLC provides various financial services in the United Kingdom, Europe, the Americas, Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. The company operates through Barclays UK and Barclays International division segments. It offers financial services, such as retail banking, credit cards, wholesale banking, investment banking, wealth management, and investment management services.