Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) Short Interest Update

Lloyds Banking Group plc (NYSE:LYG) saw a significant increase in short interest in the month of January. As of January 31st, there was short interest totalling 10,280,000 shares, an increase of 22.5% from the January 15th total of 8,390,000 shares. Approximately 0.1% of the company’s stock are sold short. Based on an average trading volume of 12,150,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 0.8 days.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Separately, Morgan Stanley downgraded shares of Lloyds Banking Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, October 30th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $2.75.

Lloyds Banking Group Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NYSE:LYG opened at $3.22 on Monday. The company has a market capitalization of $48.71 billion, a PE ratio of 8.24 and a beta of 1.31. Lloyds Banking Group has a 12-month low of $2.04 and a 12-month high of $3.24. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $2.86 and its 200-day simple moving average is $2.92.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Lloyds Banking Group

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Lloyds Banking Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $237,000. Creative Planning lifted its position in Lloyds Banking Group by 15.8% during the third quarter. Creative Planning now owns 952,249 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $2,971,000 after acquiring an additional 129,940 shares during the last quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in Lloyds Banking Group by 21.0% in the third quarter. Aaron Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 120,513 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $376,000 after acquiring an additional 20,884 shares in the last quarter. Blue Trust Inc. grew its holdings in Lloyds Banking Group by 115.2% in the third quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 211,425 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $660,000 after purchasing an additional 113,201 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Raymond James & Associates increased its position in shares of Lloyds Banking Group by 37.4% during the third quarter. Raymond James & Associates now owns 3,416,484 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $10,659,000 after purchasing an additional 929,478 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 2.15% of the company’s stock.

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.