Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC Sells 3,606 Shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG)

Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC lowered its position in Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 69,252 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 3,606 shares during the period. Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC’s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $188,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of LYG. Brentview Investment Management LLC bought a new position in Lloyds Banking Group in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Mesirow Financial Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter valued at $32,000. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. bought a new position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $34,000. Simon Quick Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Lloyds Banking Group during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. Finally, Cerro Pacific Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Lloyds Banking Group during the 4th quarter worth about $37,000. 2.15% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Lloyds Banking Group Trading Down 3.2 %

Shares of NYSE LYG opened at $3.54 on Wednesday. The firm has a market capitalization of $53.69 billion, a PE ratio of 10.71 and a beta of 1.25. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $3.15 and its 200-day moving average is $2.99. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a 1 year low of $2.42 and a 1 year high of $3.91.

Lloyds Banking Group (NYSE:LYG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 20th. The financial services provider reported $0.05 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.08 by ($0.03). The business had revenue of $9.46 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $4.76 billion. Lloyds Banking Group had a return on equity of 8.46% and a net margin of 11.45%. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that Lloyds Banking Group plc will post 0.27 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Lloyds Banking Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a semi-annual dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 30th. Investors of record on Friday, April 11th will be issued a $0.1035 dividend. This represents a yield of 4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, April 11th. This is an increase from Lloyds Banking Group’s previous semi-annual dividend of $0.05. Lloyds Banking Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 60.61%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

LYG has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods downgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley raised Lloyds Banking Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating in a report on Tuesday, March 4th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $2.75.

About Lloyds Banking Group

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.