Franklin Resources Inc. Lowers Stake in Barclays PLC $BCS

Franklin Resources Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) by 7.3% during the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 234,662 shares of the financial services provider’s stock after selling 18,526 shares during the quarter. Franklin Resources Inc.’s holdings in Barclays were worth $4,362,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its position in shares of Barclays by 14.1% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 352,328 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $5,412,000 after buying an additional 43,607 shares during the last quarter. FORA Capital LLC purchased a new position in shares of Barclays in the 1st quarter worth approximately $697,000. RWA Wealth Partners LLC bought a new position in shares of Barclays during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $654,000. Invesco Ltd. lifted its position in Barclays by 8,088.1% during the first quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 882,108 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $13,549,000 after acquiring an additional 871,335 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Barclays in the first quarter valued at approximately $230,000. 3.39% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Barclays Price Performance

NYSE BCS opened at $22.75 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $79.17 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.48, a PEG ratio of 0.43 and a beta of 1.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.94, a current ratio of 1.41 and a quick ratio of 1.41. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $21.02 and its 200 day moving average price is $19.74. Barclays PLC has a 1 year low of $12.14 and a 1 year high of $22.91.

Barclays (NYSE:BCS) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, September 30th. The financial services provider reported $0.45 earnings per share for the quarter. The business had revenue of $9.21 billion for the quarter. Barclays had a return on equity of 8.19% and a net margin of 21.26%. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Barclays PLC will post 2 earnings per share for the current year.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

BCS has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. Citigroup reaffirmed a “neutral” rating on shares of Barclays in a research report on Monday. Morgan Stanley restated an “overweight” rating on shares of Barclays in a research note on Monday, November 24th. Weiss Ratings reiterated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Barclays in a research note on Wednesday, October 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued an “outperform” rating on shares of Barclays in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Wall Street Zen lowered Barclays from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 3rd. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and two have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Barclays has an average rating of “Moderate Buy”.

About Barclays

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.