30,819 Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG Shares Bought by Arvest Investments Inc.

Key Points

• Arvest Investments more than doubled its Citizens Financial Group stake in the third quarter, purchasing 30,819 additional shares to own 55,782 shares worth approximately $3.56 million. Institutional investors collectively own 94.9% of CFG.
• Citizens Financial Group reported quarterly EPS of $1.41, slightly above the $1.39 consensus estimate, while revenue of $2.32 billion fell short of expectations. The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.52 per share, implying a 3.2% annual yield.
• Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating, with an average price target of $77.47 compared with the stock’s reported price of $64.90.

Arvest Investments Inc. raised its holdings in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 123.5% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 55,782 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 30,819 shares during the quarter. Arvest Investments Inc.'s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $3,557,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in CFG. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the first quarter worth about $27,000. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 319.8% during the 2nd quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 424 shares of the bank's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 323 shares during the period. Virtus Advisers LLC purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Finally, Align Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 94.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

NYSE CFG opened at $64.90 on Thursday. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $49.00 and a 1-year high of $75.33. The company has a market capitalization of $27.33 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.92, a PEG ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 0.72. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $67.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $67.19. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 16th. The bank reported $1.41 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.34 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 9.52% and a net margin of 18.07%. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.05 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.30 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.52 per share. This is a boost from Citizens Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 37.02%.

Insider Activity at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, CEO Bruce Van Saun sold 129,369 shares of the business's stock in a transaction dated 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 sale, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,140,763 shares in the company, valued at $82,214,789.41. The trade was a 10.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CFG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Barclays increased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald decreased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 14th. Stephens cut their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $70.00 to $65.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday. Finally, Truist Financial reduced their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $77.00 to $70.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $77.47.

Citizens Financial Group Company Profile

Citizens Financial Group, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. Its principal subsidiary, Citizens Bank, provides banking and financial services to consumers, small businesses, middle-market companies, large corporations and institutional clients.

The company offers consumer deposit accounts, residential mortgages, home equity financing, credit cards, personal loans and other lending products. Its commercial banking activities include business loans, equipment financing, treasury management, capital markets services and investment banking.

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