Barclays shares rise after U.K. lender outlines operations overhaul

Investing.com -- London-listed shares in Barclays (LON:BARC) climbed in early trading on Tuesday, as investors assessed the bank's new plans to overhaul its operations and slash costs.

In a presentation given alongside the British firm's fourth-quarter results, Barclays and Chief Executive C.S. Venkatakrishnan outlined a sweeping overhaul of the business into five operating divisions ranging from wealth management to retail banking.

"This resegmentation will provide an enhanced and more granular disclosure of the performance of each of these operating divisions, alongside more accountability from an operational and management standpoint," Barclays said in a statement.

The announcement, which marked the first major restructuring push by the lender in nearly a decade, comes as Barclays' share price has lagged behind many of its European rivals. According to Reuters, the weak performance of the stock has fueled discontentment among investors and a growing call to streamline the company.

Barclays is also aiming to return £10 billion to shareholders between this year and 2026, along with a group return on tangible equity -- a measure of profitability -- of greater than 12% by 2026.

In its latest fiscal year, Barclays said it would buy back £3B from shareholders, representing a 37% increase compared to 2022.

Full-year statutory return on tangible equity came in at 9.0%, while profit before tax and structural cost actions of £6.6B was roughly in line with company-compiled analyst estimates.