Barclays (NYSE:BCS) Reaches New 1-Year High at $9.52

Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS)’s stock price reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $9.52 and last traded at $9.51, with a volume of 2101066 shares. The stock had previously closed at $9.42.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, StockNews.com cut Barclays from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 21st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, two have given a hold rating and two have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $190.00.

Barclays Stock Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 1.34, a current ratio of 1.34 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.63. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $8.20 and a 200-day simple moving average of $7.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 6.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.35 and a beta of 1.47.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported ($0.03) earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.36 by ($0.39). Barclays had a net margin of 16.82% and a return on equity of 6.09%. The business had revenue of $6.95 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $7.38 billion. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Barclays PLC will post 1.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Barclays Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, April 3rd. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.2671 per share. This represents a dividend yield of 4.6%. This is a positive change from Barclays’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.14. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 29th. Barclays’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 37.96%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. grew its stake in shares of Barclays by 1,934.9% during the 1st quarter. JPMorgan Chase & Co. now owns 168,265 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $1,330,000 after purchasing an additional 159,996 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its position in Barclays by 8.2% during the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 2,299,509 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $18,166,000 after buying an additional 175,029 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC increased its holdings in Barclays by 33.8% during the first quarter. Private Advisor Group LLC now owns 22,110 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $175,000 after buying an additional 5,580 shares during the last quarter. Citigroup Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Barclays by 1,026.8% during the 1st quarter. Citigroup Inc. now owns 265,893 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $2,101,000 after acquiring an additional 242,296 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James Trust N.A. lifted its position in Barclays by 171.3% during the first quarter. Raymond James Trust N.A. now owns 29,371 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $232,000 after purchasing an additional 18,545 shares in the last quarter. 3.39% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.