Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) Upgraded to Outperform at Evercore ISI

Evercore ISI upgraded shares of Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) from an in-line rating to an outperform rating in a research report sent to investors on Friday morning, MarketBeat.com reports. They currently have $55.00 target price on the bank's stock, up from their prior target price of $48.00.

Other equities research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. DA Davidson dropped their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $53.00 to $49.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company set a $57.00 price target on Citizens Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. The Goldman Sachs Group cut their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Cowen began coverage on Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a "buy" rating on the stock. Finally, Argus set a $45.00 target price on Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, thirteen have issued a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $50.89.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of CFG traded up $0.40 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $48.98. The stock had a trading volume of 388,163 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,825,833. The firm has a market cap of $21.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.88, a PEG ratio of 0.83 and a beta of 0.76. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $43.05 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.84. Citizens Financial Group has a 52 week low of $32.60 and a 52 week high of $49.68.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.04. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.94% and a net margin of 13.26%. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.01 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.82 earnings per share. The business's revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group will post 3.92 EPS for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.43%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.06%.

Citizens Financial Group declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to buy up to 8.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Trading of Citizens Financial Group

Several large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CFG. Heartland Bank & Trust Co acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $398,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 19.2% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 54,870 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,248,000 after purchasing an additional 8,851 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. raised its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 425.7% in the 1st quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 26,104 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,069,000 after acquiring an additional 21,138 shares during the period. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 37.9% in the 1st quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,126 shares of the bank's stock worth $292,000 after acquiring an additional 1,957 shares during the period. Finally, World Investment Advisors acquired a new stake in Citizens Financial Group in the 1st quarter worth $410,000. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.