AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs Buys New Shares in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Key Points

• AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs initiated a new stake in Citizens Financial Group, buying 18,025 shares valued at about $1.05 million in the fourth quarter.
• Citizens Financial Group reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with EPS of $1.13 on revenue of $2.17 billion, and revenue rose 12% year over year.
• The bank declared a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share, implying an annualized yield of about 3.0%; analysts currently rate the stock a Moderate Buy with a consensus price target of $70.88.

AG2R LA Mondiale Gestion D Actifs purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund purchased 18,025 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $1,053,000.

Several other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CFG. Alyeska Investment Group L.P. acquired a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $87,173,000. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI increased its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 326.3% in the third quarter. Zurich Insurance Group Ltd FI now owns 2,082,961 shares of the bank's stock worth $110,730,000 after acquiring an additional 1,594,326 shares during the period. Artemis Investment Management LLP raised its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 160.4% during the fourth quarter. Artemis Investment Management LLP now owns 2,448,050 shares of the bank's stock worth $142,991,000 after purchasing an additional 1,508,070 shares during the last quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc raised its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 411.6% during the fourth quarter. Impax Asset Management Group plc now owns 1,729,587 shares of the bank's stock worth $101,025,000 after purchasing an additional 1,391,483 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ninety One UK Ltd lifted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 13.1% during the fourth quarter. Ninety One UK Ltd now owns 6,574,714 shares of the bank's stock valued at $384,029,000 after purchasing an additional 763,098 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.90% of the company's stock.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Down 2.5%

NYSE CFG opened at $60.41 on Thursday. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $61.36 and a 200 day moving average price of $59.57. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $25.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.28, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 0.70. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $38.80 and a one year high of $68.79.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 8.31%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.77 earnings per share. Research analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.19 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.0%. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 43.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have commented on CFG. TD Cowen upped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $78.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. New Street Research set a $73.00 price objective on Citizens Financial Group in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Robert W. Baird upgraded Citizens Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $65.00 target price on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 9th. Citigroup reaffirmed a "buy" rating on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $68.00 to $68.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Nineteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $70.88.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Citizens Financial Group news, insider Susan Lamonica sold 13,258 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.04, for a total value of $769,494.32. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 165,971 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,632,956.84. This trade represents a 7.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.67% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Citizens Financial Group Company 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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