With the General Election nowless than four months away, Lloyds (LSE: LLOY) (NYSE: LYG.US) could find itself something of a political hot potato. After all, it still remains part-nationalised, although the government has already sold off two major tranches of shares and there are reports that it hasbeen offloading shares in Lloyds since the beginning ofthis year.
Furthermore, with the UK economy growing at a relatively fast pace, the incumbent government could use the success of Lloyds in recent years to try and convince the electorate that they should remain in power. As such, Lloyds could be in the headlines for all the right reasonsover the next few months.
An Improving Outlook
Indeed, Lloyds has made excellent progress in recent years. For example, it is expected to announce its first year of profitability since the start of the credit crunch and, while the improving UK economy has been a major reason for this, credit must also go to Lloyds and its strategy.
For example, Lloyds has successfully rationalised its business and made itself slimmer, more efficient, and more financially sound as a result. It has reduced its exposure to regions and operations that require more capital and that pose greater risk in favour of lower capital, lower risk and higher return areas. The effect of this is expected to be a cost:income ratio of just 45% by 2017, which would be a stunningly low figure and compare extremely favourably to the majority of its sector peers.
Such changes are clearly making Lloyds a highly profitable bank once more and, although its bottom line growth forecasts are only in-line with the wider market over the next couple of years (at around 5% per annum), Lloyds still has huge investment potential.
Valuation
Part of the reason for this is simply Lloyds current valuation appears to be too low. Certainly, the government selling its stake may be having a dampening effect on the banks share price, but even after strengthening its balance sheet and returning to profitability, it still has a price to book (P/B) ratio of just 1.3. This has significant scope to increase during the course of the year and, as such, share price gains could be on offer for investors in Lloyds.
Looking Ahead
Lloyds remains a relatively cyclical stock in terms of its beta being above 1. In fact, it is 1.15 and this means that for every 1% move in the wider index, Lloyds share price should (in theory) move by 1.15%. As such, and while the General Election could cause investors to remain cautious in the short term, the FTSE 100s favourable long term prospects should mean that investors in Lloyds benefit to a greater extent than the performance of the wider index especially since the banks valuation is so appealing.
As a result, now could be a great time to buy Lloyds, with it now likely to enjoy a relatively high level of investor attention as we move through the year.
Of course, Lloyds isn’t the only stock that could be worth buying right now. The difficulty, though, is finding the others, since most private investors lack the time to trawl through the index looking for them.
That’s why the analysts at The Motley Fool have written a free and without obligation guide called 7 Simple Steps For Seeking Serious Wealth that could help you to unearth the best stocks at the lowest prices.
It’s simple, straightforward and you can put it to use on your own portfolio right away. It could make 2015 an even more prosperous year for your finances.
Click here to get your copy of the guide – it’s completely free and comes without any obligation.
Get FREE Issues of The Motley Fool Collective
Get straightforward advice on whats really happening with the stock markets, direct to your inbox. Help yourself with our FREE email newsletter designed to help you protect and grow your portfolio wealth.
By providing your email address, you consent to receiving further information on our goods and services and those of our business partners. To opt-out of receiving this information click here. All information provided is governed by our Privacy Statement.
Peter Stephens owns shares of Lloyds Banking Group. The Motley Fool UK has no position in any of the shares mentioned. We Fools don’t all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors.
