66,846 Shares in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG Acquired by Bellwether Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Bellwether Advisors LLC opened a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the first quarter, buying 66,846 shares valued at about $4.0 million.
• Citizens Financial Group reported better-than-expected quarterly results, posting EPS of $1.30 versus estimates of $1.25 and revenue of $2.28 billion, up 12.1% year over year.
• Several analysts remain constructive on CFG, with multiple firms raising price targets; the stock now has a Moderate Buy consensus and an average target price of $78.55.

Bellwether Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm acquired 66,846 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $4,009,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth $26,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $29,000. Activest Wealth Management lifted its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 5,600.0% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 513 shares of the bank's stock worth $30,000 after acquiring an additional 504 shares during the period. Finally, DV Equities LLC bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, insider Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.16, for a total transaction of $376,068.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 22,565 shares in the company, valued at $1,402,640.40. This represents a 21.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.67% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on CFG shares. Robert W. Baird raised their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald increased their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $73.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Barclays upped their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, UBS Group upped their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Seventeen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $78.55.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of CFG stock opened at $71.93 on Wednesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $45.90 and a 12-month high of $74.70. The business's 50 day moving average is $66.81 and its two-hundred day moving average is $63.81. The company has a market capitalization of $30.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.60, a P/E/G ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.67.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The bank reported $1.30 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.25 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 8.85% and a net margin of 17.18%.The business's revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $0.92 EPS. Analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.27 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 30th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. Citizens Financial Group's payout ratio is currently 39.91%.

Citizens Financial Group Profile

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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