Citizens (NYSE:CIA) Cut to "Sell" at Wall Street Zen

Citizens (NYSE:CIA - Get Free Report) was downgraded by investment analysts at Wall Street Zen from a "hold" rating to a "sell" rating in a report issued on Thursday.

Citizens Stock Performance

Shares of CIA traded down $0.13 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $3.72. 48,443 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 106,620. The company has a market cap of $185.65 million, a PE ratio of 8.65 and a beta of 0.44. Citizens has a 52-week low of $2.33 and a 52-week high of $5.95. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $4.26 and a two-hundred day moving average of $4.47.

Citizens (NYSE:CIA - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The insurance provider reported $0.07 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.10 by ($0.03). Citizens had a return on equity of 11.50% and a net margin of 8.87%. The business had revenue of $63.47 million during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $64.66 million. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Citizens will post 0.32 EPS for the current year.

Insider Activity at Citizens

In related news, CEO Jon Stenberg acquired 106,340 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Monday, April 7th. The shares were acquired at an average cost of $3.89 per share, for a total transaction of $413,662.60. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 124,363 shares in the company, valued at approximately $483,772.07. This trade represents a 590.02% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 1.60% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Citizens

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Truffle Hound Capital LLC raised its holdings in Citizens by 85.7% during the 1st quarter. Truffle Hound Capital LLC now owns 700,000 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $3,185,000 after buying an additional 323,137 shares during the period. First Eagle Investment Management LLC increased its position in Citizens by 14.2% during the fourth quarter. First Eagle Investment Management LLC now owns 554,894 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $2,225,000 after acquiring an additional 68,824 shares during the last quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Citizens by 0.8% in the fourth quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 427,347 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,714,000 after acquiring an additional 3,235 shares during the period. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of Citizens by 1.0% in the fourth quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 269,581 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $1,081,000 after acquiring an additional 2,590 shares during the period. Finally, Millennium Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Citizens by 49.2% in the 4th quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 202,347 shares of the insurance provider's stock worth $811,000 after acquiring an additional 66,718 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 13.73% of the company's stock.

About Citizens

Citizens, Inc provides life insurance products in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Life Insurance and Home Service Insurance. The Life Insurance segment issues ordinary whole life insurance and endowment policies in the United States dollar-denominated amounts to non-U.S.