Baron Wealth Management LLC Raises Stock Holdings in Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG)

Baron Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) by 30.8% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 16,851 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after buying an additional 3,969 shares during the period. Baron Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in Lloyds Banking Group were worth $53,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans lifted its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 339.7% during the third quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 58,688 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $183,000 after purchasing an additional 45,341 shares in the last quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 107.6% during the 3rd quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 106,071 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $331,000 after purchasing an additional 54,987 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 22.3% during the 3rd quarter. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. now owns 1,022,677 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $3,191,000 after buying an additional 186,443 shares in the last quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 38.7% in the 3rd quarter. Aptus Capital Advisors LLC now owns 18,984 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 5,294 shares during the period. Finally, Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. increased its stake in Lloyds Banking Group by 0.4% in the 3rd quarter. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. now owns 4,894,063 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $15,269,000 after buying an additional 18,494 shares in the last quarter. 2.15% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several brokerages have recently commented on LYG. UBS Group restated a “neutral” rating on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Tuesday, July 30th. Kepler Capital Markets initiated coverage on Lloyds Banking Group in a research note on Thursday, September 5th. They issued a “hold” rating for the company. The Goldman Sachs Group started coverage on shares of Lloyds Banking Group in a research report on Friday, October 4th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Citigroup lowered shares of Lloyds Banking Group from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, August 5th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada downgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an “outperform” rating to a “sector perform” rating in a report on Friday, July 26th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $2.75.

Lloyds Banking Group Stock Down 1.4 %

NYSE LYG opened at $2.79 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50 day moving average price of $3.00 and a 200-day moving average price of $2.92. Lloyds Banking Group plc has a one year low of $2.00 and a one year high of $3.24. The company has a market capitalization of $42.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 7.15 and a beta of 1.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.76, a quick ratio of 1.48 and a current ratio of 1.45.

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.