Metis Global Partners LLC Sells 2,103 Shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Metis Global Partners LLC lessened its holdings in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 11.8% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 15,660 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 2,103 shares during the period. Metis Global Partners LLC’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $701,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Brookstone Capital Management raised its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2.9% in the second quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 7,497 shares of the bank’s stock worth $336,000 after purchasing an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory boosted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 2.8% during the 2nd quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory now owns 8,961 shares of the bank’s stock worth $401,000 after acquiring an additional 243 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2.4% in the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,531 shares of the bank’s stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. Old Port Advisors raised its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 0.9% in the first quarter. Old Port Advisors now owns 32,767 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,342,000 after purchasing an additional 296 shares during the last quarter. Finally, REAP Financial Group LLC lifted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 72.4% during the second quarter. REAP Financial Group LLC now owns 736 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 309 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have commented on CFG. Weiss Ratings raised shares of Citizens Financial Group from a “hold (c+)” rating to a “buy (b-)” rating in a research report on Friday, November 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded Citizens Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and upped their price objective for the company from $48.50 to $52.00 in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, September 19th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of Citizens Financial Group from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and lifted their price objective for the stock from $53.00 to $71.00 in a research report on Monday, September 29th. Finally, DA Davidson restated a “buy” rating and set a $59.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, October 16th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Citizens Financial Group presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $56.57.

Citizens Financial Group Price Performance

CFG stock opened at $52.66 on Thursday. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.60 and a 52 week high of $55.24. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.62 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.75, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.82. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $51.83 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $47.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.44.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 15th. The bank reported $1.05 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.03 by $0.02. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 14.17% and a return on equity of 7.48%. The firm had revenue of $2.12 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.10 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.79 EPS. The business’s revenue was up 11.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, November 12th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, October 29th were issued a $0.46 dividend. This is a positive change from Citizens Financial Group’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.42. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, October 29th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.54%.

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.