Barclays share price: Analysts expect Q4 losses

Investec is expecting Barclays (LON:BARC) to lose money in the fourth quarter but cost initiatives still make it a ‘buy’, according to the broker.

The British bank is due to report its full-year results on March 1. Ahead of the announcement, analyst Ian Gordon said in a note to clients: “Barclays always loses money in the fourth quarter of any year, and we expect Q4 2015 to be bad enough to wipe out virtually all reported earnings from Q1 to Q3 2015, hence an uncovered dividend for a fourth successive year. Be that as it may, ahead of – we hope – a raft of cost initiatives on 1 March, on 0.5x 2017 estimated total net asset value, we reaffirm our ‘buy’.”

Barclays said last month that its investment bank would quit nine countries and would exit cash equities in Asia as part of a plan to focus on the firm’s most profitable businesses in the US and UK. The move will result in about 1,200 job reductions, on top of about 7,000 cuts in the investment bank in the last three years, which has reduced its headcount to about 17,000. CEO Jes Staley, who joined the lender at the start of December, is expected to outline his broader strategy when the bank reveals its annual results next month.
Despite reiterating its stance on Barclays’ stock, Investec reduced its target price from 260p to 245p. The bank kicked off today’s trading session in positive territory. As of 08:14 GMT, the shares were changing hands at 162.30p, 0.53 percent up intraday. Meanwhile, the FTSE 100 benchmark index had increased by 0.46 percent to stand at 5,889.33 points.
As of 08:39 GMT, Wednesday, 17 February, Barclays share price is 162.30p.