Axxcess Wealth Management LLC Cuts Stake in Citigroup Inc. $C

Key Points

• Axxcess Wealth Management cut its Citigroup stake by 30.5% in the first quarter, leaving it with 40,867 shares valued at about $4.64 million.
• Citigroup insiders were also selling stock, including Edward Skyler and director John Cunningham Dugan, while insiders own just 0.11% of the company.
• The bank reported strong first-quarter earnings that beat estimates, and it also authorized a $30 billion share buyback as analysts remained generally bullish with a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating.

Axxcess Wealth Management LLC reduced its position in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Free Report) by 30.5% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 40,867 shares of the company's stock after selling 17,932 shares during the quarter. Axxcess Wealth Management LLC's holdings in Citigroup were worth $4,635,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Mcguire Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in Citigroup in the fourth quarter worth approximately $25,000. Richards Merrill & Peterson Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Citigroup in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. TD Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Citigroup in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Luken Investment Analytics LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Citigroup during the 4th quarter worth $32,000. Finally, High Note Wealth LLC boosted its position in Citigroup by 107.7% during the fourth quarter. High Note Wealth LLC now owns 270 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 140 shares in the last quarter. 71.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Citigroup news, insider Edward Skyler sold 25,000 shares of Citigroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.41, for a total transaction of $3,285,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 182,022 shares in the company, valued at approximately $23,919,511.02. The trade was a 12.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Director John Cunningham Dugan sold 2,117 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.30, for a total transaction of $265,260.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director directly owned 12,194 shares in the company, valued at $1,527,908.20. This trade represents a 14.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

Citigroup Stock Performance

Shares of C opened at $140.75 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $133.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $122.37. The stock has a market cap of $240.05 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.44, a P/E/G ratio of 0.62 and a beta of 1.11. Citigroup Inc. has a one year low of $85.48 and a one year high of $147.96.

Citigroup (NYSE:C - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $0.43. The firm had revenue of $24.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.96 billion. Citigroup had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 9.35%.The company's revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.96 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts predict that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.83 EPS for the current year.

Citigroup declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $30.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 13.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Analyst Ratings Changes

C has been the topic of several analyst reports. Evercore set a $143.00 target price on Citigroup in a research note on Monday. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Citigroup from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday, May 9th. Piper Sandler reaffirmed an "overweight" rating and issued a $145.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group boosted their price objective on shares of Citigroup from $137.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $145.00.

Citigroup News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Bank of America and UBS both raised their price targets on Citigroup, and JPMorgan also lifted its target while keeping an overweight view, reinforcing bullish expectations ahead of earnings.
• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street is expecting strong second-quarter results from big banks, with analysts citing better trading and investment-banking revenue and potential earnings upside for Citigroup.
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup expanded its precious-metals franchise by becoming a clearing member of London Precious Metals Clearing Limited, which broadens its gold, silver, platinum, and palladium settlement services.
• Positive Sentiment: Citi was also named depositary bank for Vicore Pharma’s ADR program, adding another piece of issuer-services business that supports fee generation.
• Neutral Sentiment: The bank is set to report quarterly earnings next week, and investors are positioning around whether Citigroup can deliver an earnings beat and confirm the recent positive analyst revisions. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: A podcast-style consumer complaint about an elderly widow’s credit-card debt mentioned Citi cards and could add a small reputational overhang, though it is unlikely to move the stock much on its own. Article Title

Citigroup Company Profile

Citigroup Inc is a global financial services company headquartered in New York City with roots tracing back to the City Bank of New York, founded in 1812. The modern Citigroup was created through the 1998 merger of Citicorp and Travelers Group and has since operated as a diversified bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial products and services to consumers, corporations, governments and institutions worldwide.

Citi's principal businesses include retail and commercial banking, credit card and consumer lending products, wealth management and private banking, and a full suite of institutional services.

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