Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) Receives Consensus Rating of "Moderate Buy" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Analysts maintain a positive outlook: Nineteen brokerages assign Citigroup a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating, with 13 buys, four holds and two strong buys. The average 12-month price target is approximately $145.22.
• Strong quarterly performance and shareholder returns: Citigroup reported adjusted EPS of $3.15 and revenue of $24.77 billion, beating estimates and increasing revenue 14.5% year over year. The company also authorized a $30 billion buyback and raised its quarterly dividend to $0.67.
• Near-term costs remain a concern: Planned restructuring investments and severance expenses could pressure earnings and returns in the near term, although analysts see potential benefits from the turnaround by 2028. Institutional investors own 71.72% of the stock.

Shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Get Free Report) have received an average rating of "Moderate Buy" from the nineteen analysts that are currently covering the firm, Marketbeat.com reports. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and two have given a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $145.2222.

Several analysts have recently weighed in on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Truist Financial reduced their price objective on Citigroup from $158.00 to $154.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their target price on shares of Citigroup from $137.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $145.00 price target (up from $125.00) on shares of Citigroup in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Citigroup from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in C. Truist Financial Corp lifted its position in Citigroup by 4.7% during the 4th quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 375,977 shares of the company's stock worth $43,873,000 after acquiring an additional 16,744 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd raised its position in shares of Citigroup by 38.8% in the 4th quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 1,306,851 shares of the company's stock valued at $152,496,000 after purchasing an additional 365,041 shares in the last quarter. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Citigroup by 166.9% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,990 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,407,000 after buying an additional 12,499 shares during the last quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management boosted its stake in Citigroup by 9.8% during the 4th quarter. Ritholtz Wealth Management now owns 132,679 shares of the company's stock valued at $15,482,000 after acquiring an additional 11,791 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC grew its stake in Citigroup by 15.6% in the fourth quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC now owns 96,453 shares of the company's stock worth $11,255,000 after purchasing an additional 13,046 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.72% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Citigroup

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup reported its strongest quarterly revenue in roughly a decade. Second-quarter revenue benefited from broad-based growth across businesses, higher net interest income and efficiency gains, supporting a sharp increase in profitability. Citigroup's Q2 Revenues Reach Decade High: What's Fuelling Growth?
• Positive Sentiment: Morgan Stanley argues that Citi’s planned investments and severance costs could obscure the benefits of its restructuring in the near term, but potentially produce a meaningful earnings payoff by 2028. Citi’s second-quarter net income rose 45% to $5.8 billion, reinforcing the long-term turnaround case. Morgan Stanley says Citi’s expense scare hides a 2028 payoff
• Neutral Sentiment: Citigroup-related entities exited substantial-holder status in Predictive Discovery Limited. The disclosure appears to concern Citi’s investment position in another company and is unlikely to materially affect Citigroup’s earnings or valuation. Citigroup Entities Exit Substantial Holder Status in Predictive Discovery
• Negative Sentiment: The main pressure on C is near-term cost guidance. Management’s warning that investments and severance expenses may rise during the second half of 2026 has led investors to question how quickly strong revenue growth will translate into sustainable earnings and returns. This concern previously outweighed the company’s earnings beat and remains an overhang on the stock. Morgan Stanley says Citi’s expense scare hides a 2028 payoff

Citigroup Stock Down 2.7%

Citigroup stock opened at $133.86 on Friday. The stock's fifty day moving average is $136.62 and its two-hundred day moving average is $124.76. The stock has a market cap of $228.31 billion, a PE ratio of 14.46, a P/E/G ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.12. Citigroup has a 1-year low of $90.68 and a 1-year high of $147.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Citigroup (NYSE:C - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $3.15 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.41. Citigroup had a return on equity of 10.15% and a net margin of 10.23%.The business had revenue of $24.77 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.96 EPS. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts expect that Citigroup will post 11.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup announced that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $30.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 13.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Citigroup Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd will be issued a $0.67 dividend. This represents a $2.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.0%. This is a boost from Citigroup's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd. Citigroup's dividend payout ratio is 28.94%.

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.

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