MBB Public Markets I LLC Invests $301,000 in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Key Points

• MBB Public Markets I LLC purchased 7,337 shares of Citizens Financial Group, valued at approximately $301,000, as part of a broader trend of institutional investment in the bank.
• Citizens Financial Group reported earnings of $0.92 per share, exceeding estimates of $0.88, and achieved a revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, up 3.8% from the previous year.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, with a resulting annualized yield of 3.2% and a dividend payout ratio of 51.06%.

MBB Public Markets I LLC bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund bought 7,337 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $301,000.

Other hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Grove Bank & Trust lifted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 97.1% during the first quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 678 shares of the bank's stock valued at $28,000 after purchasing an additional 334 shares during the last quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC lifted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 143.4% during the first quarter. Cary Street Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 1,076 shares of the bank's stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 634 shares during the last quarter. NBT Bank N A NY bought a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the first quarter valued at approximately $45,000. Finally, Wayfinding Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the first quarter worth approximately $46,000. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Up 0.1%

Shares of NYSE CFG traded up $0.06 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $51.82. The stock had a trading volume of 3,733,159 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,437,487. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.85. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $32.60 and a 1 year high of $52.85. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $49.27 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $43.33. The firm has a market cap of $22.35 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.56, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.80.

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

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

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Raymond James Financial lifted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $48.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Evercore ISI raised shares of Citizens Financial Group from an "in-line" rating to an "outperform" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $48.00 to $55.00 in a research note on Friday, July 18th. UBS Group lifted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, May 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Citizens Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $48.50 to $52.00 in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Finally, DA Davidson lifted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $49.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Two investment analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Citizens Financial Group has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $52.00.

About Citizens Financial Group

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.