Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) Hits New 12-Month High - Should You Buy?

Key Points

• Citizens Financial Group hit a new 52-week high at $52.03 during trading, with the stock currently priced at $51.96 and a significant trading volume of 2,991,386 shares.
• Analysts have upgraded their ratings for CFG, with JPMorgan raising their price target to $52.00 and Citigroup increasing it to $60.00, indicating a strong overall bullish sentiment on the stock.
• The firm declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, translating to an annual yield of 3.2%, along with a new stock buyback program worth $1.50 billion, demonstrating confidence in the company's valuation.

Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) reached a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $52.03 and last traded at $51.96, with a volume of 2991386 shares. The stock had previously closed at $51.31.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on CFG. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Wall Street Zen raised Citizens Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Cowen initiated coverage on Citizens Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Citizens Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $50.00 price target for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $57.00 price target on Citizens Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Citizens Financial Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $51.53.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $47.92 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.90. The firm has a market capitalization of $22.56 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.90, a PEG ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.80.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.01 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.94% and a net margin of 13.26%.Citizens Financial Group's revenue for the quarter was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.82 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is 51.06%.

Citizens Financial Group announced that its board has approved a share buyback program on Friday, June 13th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to repurchase up to 8.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are generally an indication that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Citizens Financial Group

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. StoneX Group Inc. grew its position in Citizens Financial Group by 0.4% during the 2nd quarter. StoneX Group Inc. now owns 60,307 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,699,000 after acquiring an additional 213 shares during the last quarter. Brookstone Capital Management raised its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2.9% during the second quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 7,497 shares of the bank's stock worth $336,000 after acquiring an additional 214 shares during the last quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 0.6% during the fourth quarter. Great Valley Advisor Group Inc. now owns 39,766 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,740,000 after acquiring an additional 224 shares during the last quarter. Lynx Investment Advisory raised its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2.8% during the second 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. Finally, Wealthspire Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2.3% during the second quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 11,570 shares of the bank's stock worth $518,000 after acquiring an additional 257 shares during the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.