Citigroup (NYSE:C) Raised to “Strong-Buy” at Zacks Research

Citigroup (NYSE:C) was upgraded by stock analysts at Zacks Research from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note issued on Thursday,Zacks.com reports.

A number of other research analysts have also recently issued reports on C. Wolfe Research restated an “outperform” rating and set a $141.00 price objective on shares of Citigroup in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $121.00 price objective on shares of Citigroup in a research note on Thursday, January 15th. TD Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of Citigroup in a research note on Wednesday, January 7th. UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $132.00 price target on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price objective on Citigroup from $141.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $125.56.

Citigroup Stock Performance

C stock opened at $113.71 on Thursday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 1.00 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.63. Citigroup has a twelve month low of $55.51 and a twelve month high of $124.17. The business’s fifty day moving average is $112.04 and its 200-day moving average is $102.01. The company has a market cap of $203.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.31, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.74 and a beta of 1.18.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, January 14th. The company reported $1.81 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.65 by $0.16. The firm had revenue of $19.87 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $20.99 billion. Citigroup had a return on equity of 8.28% and a net margin of 8.50%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.34 earnings per share. Equities research analysts forecast that Citigroup will post 7.53 EPS for the current year.

Institutional Trading of Citigroup

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC increased its holdings in shares of Citigroup by 87.6% during the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 257 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the last quarter. Maseco LLP acquired a new position in Citigroup in the 4th quarter valued at $35,000. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV bought a new position in Citigroup during the 4th quarter worth $35,000. Dunhill Financial LLC increased its position in Citigroup by 92.2% during the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 319 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after buying an additional 153 shares during the period. Finally, Guerra Advisors Inc acquired a new stake in shares of Citigroup during the third quarter worth $33,000. Institutional investors own 71.72% of the company’s stock.

Trending Headlines about Citigroup

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts and screens are bullish: Citigroup was added to Zacks’ list of top income/strong-buy stocks, which can attract yield-seeking flows and bolster sentiment. Best Income Stocks to Buy for January 23rd
• Positive Sentiment: Underlying results remain supportive — Citi’s recent quarterly update showed an EPS beat and analysts have largely dismissed fears of an earnings re‑rating after the company’s Q4 performance, which helps justify current valuations. Analysts Dismiss Re-Rating Fears After Bright Citigroup (C) Earnings Update
• Neutral Sentiment: Citi research notes that a Washington affordability agenda could boost fintechs and related exposures — this is sector-positive for fintech names but is a mixed read for Citi (opportunity for fee revenue vs. policy uncertainty). US fintech stocks could gain as Trump pushes affordability agenda, Citi says
• Negative Sentiment: Layoff plans: Reuters reports Citi will cut more staff in March (after ~1,000 jobs cut this month), likely affecting managing directors and senior employees — raises near‑term execution and morale concerns even as costs fall; investors often react negatively to fresh rounds of cuts that signal tougher revenue outlooks. Exclusive: Citigroup to lay off more employees in March, sources say
• Negative Sentiment: Card pricing pressure/political optics: Reports that Citi is exploring a 10% capped-rate card to respond to political pressure (and CEO comments warning caps would hurt credit access) create uncertainty around future card yields and policy risk — potential margin compression if price caps or similar measures are implemented. Bank of America, Citigroup consider new credit cards with 10% rate, Bloomberg News reports

About Citigroup

Citigroup Inc is a global financial services company headquartered in New York City with roots tracing back to the City Bank of New York, founded in 1812. The modern Citigroup was created through the 1998 merger of Citicorp and Travelers Group and has since operated as a diversified bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial products and services to consumers, corporations, governments and institutions worldwide.

Citi’s principal businesses include retail and commercial banking, credit card and consumer lending products, wealth management and private banking, and a full suite of institutional services.