Opinion on  Barclays PLC (BCS)     Sector: Financial  >  Industry: Money Center Banks
Bullish on BCS ...

Barclays PLC engages in the provision of financial services in Europe, the United States, Africa, and Asia. It offers retail and commercial banking, credit cards, investment banking, wealth management, and investment management services. The company provides current accounts, deposit accounts, savings accounts, retail mortgages, installment finance, commercial lending, unsecured lending and protection products, and mortgage and general insurance, as well as investment advice, money transmission, and asset financing and leasing solutions. It also involves in credit card and consumer lending business, which includes processing of card payments for retailers and merchants, and issuing of credit and charge cards to corporate customers and the United Kingdom government. In addition, the company offers treasury and investment services; bancassurance products; and specialist services, such as Sharia-compliant products and mobile banking, as well as provides financing and risk management solutions, primarily in the areas of strategic advisory and mergers and acquisitions; equity and fixed income capital raising and corporate lending; and risk management across foreign exchange, interest rates, and equities and commodities for institutional and government clients. Further, it provides investment management products and services, including hedge funds, securities lending, cash management, and portfolio transition, as well as offers asset management, stockbroking, offshore banking, wealth structuring, and financial planning services. The company was formerly known as Barclays Bank Limited and changed its name to Barclays PLC in 1985. Barclays PLC was founded in 1896 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC), the oil and gas investment firm of the royal family of Abu Dhabi, said a subsidiary that bought a $3.2 billion stake six months ago is selling that position for what could be a $2.5 billion profit. H.E. Khadem Al Qubaisi, managing director of IPIC, said the sale didn't reflect a lack of confidence in the bank. "The Emirate of Abu Dhabi intends to maintain a close commercial and strategic relationship with Barclays," he said in a prepared statement. Collins Stewart analyst Alex Potter said the drop in shares probably won't stay as severe, as this was simple profit taking, albeit on a large scale. "It was slightly odd in the first place to buy a stake in a bank and shove it in your oil and gas company," he says. "That was at least slightly indicative that maybe they weren't interested in the long term. If you made such a stellar profit at this point, why wouldn't you get out?" Barclays shares have been wildly volatile in the last six months, plunging more than 65% as fears of nationalization infected the U.K. banking sector. They are now up almost 90% from that point, partly because of a bidding war for the bank's iShares exchange traded funds business, which is slated for a $4.4 billion sale to CVC Capital Partners, a private equity firm. In the first quarter, revenue grew 42% as Barclays global and retail banking businesses picked up.