Barclays Share Discussion Threads

[gcom2] 18/12/2015 14:00

most xmas rallies fizzle out mid jan

[andysaw] 18/12/2015 08:47

Rally will continue or profit making before Xmas?

[johnwise] 17/12/2015 10:42

By Peter Stephens -- The Motley Fool UK

Leader of the pack

Of course, it may take some time for investors to catch on to the opportunities within the banking space, but one bank that could lead the charge in 2016 is Barclays (LSE: BARC). Unlike a number of its sector peers, it has remained firmly in the black in recent years and hasn’t been required to seek a government shareholding. With the bank’s already relatively impressive bottom line forecast to rise by 24% in the current year and a further 24% in 2016, it’s set to offer stronger growth than the majority of its FTSE 100 peers.

Despite such strong growth potential, Barclays still trades on a price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio of just 10 and it has a price-to-book value (P/B) ratio of only 0.58. Both of these figures indicate that an upward rerating is on the cards – especially since Barclays is not only highly profitable, but is set to increase its earnings in each of the next two financial years.

Aside from rising profitability, a potential catalyst for Barclays is a change in management. Jes Staley started work as Barclays’ new CEO just two weeks ago and it seems likely that a refreshed strategy will be put in place at some point during 2016. As has been the case with other companies that have changed their management teams, investors can quickly change their minds on a stock with a new face, new message and new overall strategy. This could be a major reason for improved share price performance from Barclays next year.

Clearly, Barclays’ dividend lacks appeal at the moment while the FTSE 100 yields almost 4%. However, the bank’s 3.1% yield is due to rise to 3.9% in 2016. Further rises are very likely since Barclays pays out only 30% of profit as a dividend and earnings are set to rapidly rise. So it could quickly become an income favourite.

Undoubtedly, there are still risks ahead. Barclays could be subject to further regulatory action. And while the UK and global economy have performed well in recent years, interest rate rises could act as a brake moving forward. But these potential problems appear to be more-than-adequately priced in, with Barclays having a very wide margin of safety.

Although the banking sector may have had a disastrous period, it now appears to be very much back on its feet. As a highly profitable business trading on a low valuation and offering growth potential, Barclays seems to be an obvious buy for 2016.

[johnwise] 17/12/2015 07:39

Barclays has won the ‘Best Foreign Investment Bank’ in the Middle East by EMEA Finance at the Middle East Banking Awards.

[mani2013] 16/12/2015 22:40

Savogi,Charts are mathematical. The bars, candlesticks, high, lows, etc are simply derivation of a numbers record trail of buys & sells. The numbers do not lie. Even if the markets are manipulated, the numbers trail still gets imprinted. The chart itself if an objective reality of what has transpired, regardless of whether it's manipulated or not.As I said the problem is in the way you read the chart. TA has become very sophisticated and is no longer simply about pattern reading. It's about risk:reward ratios and support/resistance levels which drive underlying movement and trends. TA requires hard work. Rather than spending the time and energy to understand it, It is easier for people to discard it as 'reading tea leaves' and look for that quick buck. To survive in the markets in the long run, TA is extremely essential. It is THE future of trading. To ignore it is folly :)

[moneysage] 16/12/2015 20:41

Looks like Santa rally just started!

[moneysage] 16/12/2015 19:22

Interest increase in USA good news for bank profits and margins!!

[christh] 16/12/2015 15:55

aussiedonnie,

it's not luck...it's the right thing, right opportunity.

It felt with the ftse but business as strong as ever and solid profits.

It will get to the August levels of 290p early next year!

[aussiedonnie] 16/12/2015 15:22

PHILO124
16 Dec'15 - 11:30 - 113806 of 113809


Topped up by 60% No fear at theses levels.

................

Are you a masochist Philo ; ) seriously good luck to you mate.

[cmillar] 16/12/2015 15:18

Wonder if Diamond Bob and ATMA would be in the market for it?!

[smurfy2001] 16/12/2015 15:13

That would be a terrible decision. Africa is a huge growth market!

[johnwise] 16/12/2015 14:09

Barclays could break its 100-year relationship with Africa by pulling out

Barclays, as part of the turnaround strategy initiated by its chief executive Jes Staley, could consider selling part or the whole of its Africa business. This could break the bank's almost 100- year history with the world's second-largest and second-most-populous continent.

[christh] 16/12/2015 12:28

280p in the new year, business at top.
results will show that Barclays is doing extremely well.
Dividend will rise too.

Now is the chance to buy!

[philo124] 16/12/2015 11:30

Topped up by 60% No fear at theses levels.

[savogi] 16/12/2015 11:12

mania

Chart is not mathematical... chart is technical analysis which basically says that you can look at patterns in the past behavior of a stock.. So it means nothing when the market has been manipulated... in many ways is a lot like reading tea leaves.

[christh] 16/12/2015 10:12

Did you know that you could get at least £84 in rewards a year with Barclays Blue Rewards? It's our way of saying thanks and includes a wide range of benefits and rewards.

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• £84 in Loyalty Rewards a year just for banking with us, paid as £7 a month into your digital Rewards Wallet

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Plus, you can earn even more rewards with other Barclays products: £60 a year if you take out or hold a Barclays residential mortgage1 and up to £36 a year when you take out or renew a Barclays home and/or contents insurance policy. Rewards are paid monthly.

CLICK on Barclays Blue Rewards

[mani2013] 16/12/2015 09:42

Savogi,

Charts are mathematical. Maths does not lie :) Charts are a fact and reality (rather than figments of imagination or hearsay), a true representation of what has OCCURRED. They are objective in what they represent. However, how you interpret charts is subjective and that is where the issue is. Once you leave your emotional subjective interpretations behind and just listen to what the chart is telling you, then you are in harmony with the markets.

Out of interest, how do you make your trading decisions ? When to buy or when to sell ?

[moneysage] 15/12/2015 22:49

Barclays (LSE: BARC) is one of the cheapest bank stocks on the market right now. It currently trades at a forward P/E of 10.6 and has a price-to-book (P/B) ratio of just 0.62. A stock with a P/B ratio of less than 1.0 is generally regarded as undervalued, so with Barclays trading at less than two-thirds of its book value, it's really cheap.But we all know cheapness alone isn't enough to justify buying a particular stock. There are a lot of reasons why Barclays is so cheap. Firstly, it's earning a very low return on a significant proportion of its assets, particularly those relating to its investment bank and its non-core European business. Weak profitability at the bank is also not helped by the high cost of the financial penalties it has continued to pay. In addition, frequent management changes at the bank and the introduction of new regulation have created a great deal of uncertainty over its future direction.Barclays' third quarter earnings show how difficult it is to turn around its profitability, with earnings growth falling back into negative territory. Adjusted pre-tax profits fell 10%, to £1.6bn, offsetting much of the improvement earlier in the year. Overall, adjusted pre-tax profits grew by a mere 4% year-on-year to £5.2bn in the first nine months of 2015.That said, city analysts are still optimistic for Barclays' longer term prospects. They're currently expecting underlying EPS to grow by 24% this year, to 21.5p. In 2016, earnings should grow by another 21%, to 25.9p. This indicates its shares trade at just 8.6 times its expected 2016 earnings.

[cmillar] 15/12/2015 14:41

Don't I know it - been looking at them for 30 years!

[mani2013] 15/12/2015 13:57

No worries !! Thanks for reading the posts.

It is quite hard to explain by simply typing it all out. You have to see it with your own eyes on the charts to believe it :)

What I have explained to you is just a small part of the big jigsaw that is the Financial Markets !

[cmillar] 15/12/2015 13:49

Thank you Mani - A very well reasoned position. Perhaps Ball Deap could learn a thing or 2 from you! ;-)

[mani2013] 15/12/2015 13:40

I am not saying sell everything and head for the hills. I am merely stating in my posts the PROBABILITY of a certain price movement taking place based on what the charts saying.

If the probability of the price moving against you is too high, you have to manage the risk of that eventuality playing out, either by getting out (so that you are not exposed to the risk anymore), or placing stops (so you can minimise your loss if the high probability move transpires, but still benefit if the low probability move occurs) or simply hedge your position ( where you can benefit from either move - this requires advanced risk management).

The current state of play with the markets is that there is a high probability of the 'thermometer', the DOW, heading downwards based on a number of support levels being broken and the DOW failing to overcome key resistance i,e not enough buyers or bulls (and therefore, investor confidence) to create the buying momentum required to break the price barrier and take it higher. Given this scenario, I personally would hedge my positions, as there is still a (smaller) chance that the DOW will continue higher. But I would need to see evidence of that e.g price supported at certain levels or key resistance being broken. I have yet to see that evidence.