Barclays (NYSE:BCS) Hits New 1-Year High – What’s Next?

Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS)’s share price reached a new 52-week high during mid-day trading on Wednesday . The company traded as high as $15.70 and last traded at $15.74, with a volume of 4660305 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $15.45.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com lowered shares of Barclays from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th.

Barclays Stock Up 2.4 %

The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.33. The firm has a market cap of $57.06 billion, a PE ratio of 8.58, a PEG ratio of 0.39 and a beta of 1.40. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $14.17 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $13.11.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 18th. The financial services provider reported $0.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.19 by $0.15. Barclays had a return on equity of 7.74% and a net margin of 20.81%. On average, equities research analysts expect that Barclays PLC will post 2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barclays Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, April 4th. Investors of record on Friday, February 28th will be issued a $0.2737 dividend. This represents a yield of 2.7%. This is a positive change from Barclays’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.27. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 28th. Barclays’s dividend payout ratio is currently 28.80%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Barclays

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Bank of America Corp DE increased its stake in shares of Barclays by 485.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 6,680,869 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $88,789,000 after purchasing an additional 5,538,912 shares in the last quarter. FMR LLC lifted its position in shares of Barclays by 11.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,432,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $78,149,000 after acquiring an additional 667,498 shares in the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of Barclays by 20.5% in the fourth quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 6,059,544 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $80,531,000 after acquiring an additional 1,029,401 shares during the period. Causeway Capital Management LLC grew its position in shares of Barclays by 8.9% during the fourth quarter. Causeway Capital Management LLC now owns 5,930,467 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $78,816,000 after purchasing an additional 484,497 shares in the last quarter. Finally, American Century Companies Inc. raised its stake in Barclays by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 5,635,864 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $74,901,000 after purchasing an additional 505,351 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 3.39% of the company’s stock.

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.