Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) Given Average Recommendation of "Moderate Buy" by Brokerages

Key Points

• Citizens Financial Group has a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating from 20 brokerages, with 16 buy ratings and four holds. The average 12-month price target is $79.05.
• The bank exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.30 in EPS versus the $1.25 consensus and $2.28 billion in revenue, up 12.1% year over year.
• Citizens paid a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share, representing a $1.84 annualized dividend and a 2.5% yield; institutional investors own 94.9% of the stock.

Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) has earned a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" from the twenty brokerages that are covering the firm, Marketbeat Ratings reports. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and sixteen have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 1 year price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $79.05.

A number of equities research analysts have commented on CFG shares. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $76.00 to $78.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 29th. Truist Financial lifted their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $72.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 21st. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $78.00 to $84.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, July 20th.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Saun Bruce Van sold 129,369 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total value of $9,323,623.83. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,140,763 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $82,214,789.41. The trade was a 10.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. 0.67% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Institutional Trading of Citizens Financial Group

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the company. 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 buying an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC raised its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 6.7% during the 1st quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 8,838 shares of the bank's stock valued at $362,000 after buying an additional 554 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP raised its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 39.5% during the 1st quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 36,932 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,513,000 after buying an additional 10,466 shares in the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 93.4% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 9,814 shares of the bank's stock valued at $439,000 after acquiring an additional 4,739 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 5.2% in the 2nd quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 65,564 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,934,000 after acquiring an additional 3,225 shares during the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CFG opened at $74.72 on Monday. The stock has a market cap of $31.47 billion, a PE ratio of 16.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.67. Citizens Financial Group has a 1 year low of $47.96 and a 1 year high of $74.86. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $70.56 and a 200-day moving average price of $65.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The bank reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.25 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 8.85%. Citizens Financial Group's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.92 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group will post 5.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 30th were given a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 30th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.91%.

About Citizens Financial Group

Citizens Financial Group, Inc NYSE: CFG is a bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial services to individuals, small and middle-market businesses, corporations and institutional clients. Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, Citizens conducts its banking operations principally through its primary banking subsidiary, Citizens Bank, and serves customers through a combination of branch locations, ATMs and digital channels. The company is publicly traded and operates under the regulatory framework applicable to U.S.

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