Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) Short Interest Up 35.0% in January

Barclays PLC (NYSE:BCS) was the recipient of a large increase in short interest in January. As of January 15th, there was short interest totalling 11,460,000 shares, an increase of 35.0% from the December 31st total of 8,490,000 shares. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 11,350,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 1.0 days. Approximately 0.3% of the shares of the company are sold short.

Institutional Trading of Barclays

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Public Employees Retirement System of Ohio bought a new position in Barclays in the third quarter valued at about $52,335,000. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Barclays by 286.1% during the 3rd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 3,565,033 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $43,315,000 after purchasing an additional 2,641,608 shares during the last quarter. ABC Arbitrage SA acquired a new position in Barclays during the 4th quarter worth approximately $21,514,000. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its stake in Barclays by 3,073.2% in the 4th quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 689,413 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $9,052,000 after purchasing an additional 667,687 shares during the last quarter. Finally, FMR LLC boosted its position in Barclays by 11.6% in the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 6,432,007 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $78,149,000 after buying an additional 667,498 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 3.39% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have weighed in on the stock. The Goldman Sachs Group initiated coverage on shares of Barclays in a research note on Tuesday, October 8th. They issued a “buy” rating for the company. StockNews.com downgraded shares of Barclays from a “strong-buy” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 16th.

Barclays Stock Down 0.8 %

BCS stock opened at $14.69 on Friday. Barclays has a 52 week low of $7.07 and a 52 week high of $14.92. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $13.58 and a 200 day simple moving average of $12.65. The company has a quick ratio of 1.35, a current ratio of 1.35 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 5.67. The company has a market cap of $52.98 billion, a PE ratio of 9.99, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.44 and a beta of 1.41.

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.