Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a report released on Sunday morning.

Several other research analysts also recently commented on CFG. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a hold rating in a report on Monday, April 8th. Wedbush reduced their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $38.00 to $35.00 and set a neutral rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 18th. Morgan Stanley increased their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $31.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an equal weight rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 7th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $35.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a market perform rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $37.73.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Up 1.1 %

Shares of CFG opened at $35.95 on Friday. The business’s 50 day moving average is $34.24 and its 200 day moving average is $31.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Citizens Financial Group has a 12-month low of $22.77 and a 12-month high of $36.38. The company has a market capitalization of $16.48 billion, a PE ratio of 13.03 and a beta of 1.36.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.75 by ($0.10). Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 6.62%. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.00 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was down 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group will post 3.23 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 30th. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.67%. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Citizens Financial Group

In other news, insider Craig Jack Read sold 4,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.54, for a total transaction of $151,198.32. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 43,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,471,902.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.62% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Citizens Financial Group

Institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital International Investors grew its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 35,157,079 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,165,106,000 after purchasing an additional 1,199,158 shares during the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 5.7% in the third quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 11,594,481 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $310,732,000 after buying an additional 621,715 shares during the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP increased its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 217.5% in the 3rd quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 7,978,410 shares of the bank’s stock worth $213,821,000 after buying an additional 5,465,824 shares during the period. LSV Asset Management raised its position in Citizens Financial Group by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 6,504,591 shares of the bank’s stock worth $215,562,000 after buying an additional 95,292 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 6.4% during the 3rd quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 5,532,398 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $148,268,000 after acquiring an additional 332,222 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.90% of the company’s stock.

Citizens Financial Group Company Profile

Citizens Financial Group, Inc operates as the bank holding company that provides retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, corporations, and institutions in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Consumer Banking and Commercial Banking.