Balefire LLC Makes New $228,000 Investment in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Key Points

• Balefire LLC has made a new investment of $228,000 in Citizens Financial Group, acquiring 5,106 shares of the bank's stock.
• The stock is currently rated as a "Moderate Buy" with a consensus price target of $52.10, according to several analysts, including JPMorgan Chase upgrading their rating to "overweight."
• Citizens Financial Group recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, representing an annualized yield of 3.1%.

Balefire LLC bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 5,106 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $228,000.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AustralianSuper Pty Ltd bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $108,864,000. Assetmark Inc. raised its position in Citizens Financial Group by 11,167.0% in the 1st quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 1,347,537 shares of the bank's stock valued at $55,209,000 after purchasing an additional 1,335,577 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 19.1% during the first quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 7,366,754 shares of the bank's stock worth $294,007,000 after purchasing an additional 1,180,390 shares during the last quarter. Junto Capital Management LP acquired a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the first quarter valued at $38,915,000. Finally, Deutsche Bank AG raised its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 48.9% in the first quarter. Deutsche Bank AG now owns 2,790,291 shares of the bank's stock valued at $114,318,000 after buying an additional 916,760 shares during the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Down 1.8%

NYSE:CFG traded down $0.97 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $52.58. The stock had a trading volume of 3,353,620 shares, compared to its average volume of 3,983,736. The business's 50 day moving average is $49.85 and its 200-day moving average is $43.70. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.85. The company has a market cap of $22.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 0.80. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $32.60 and a one year high of $53.78.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.01 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 13.26% and a return on equity of 6.94%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.82 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is 51.06%.

Citizens Financial Group announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase plan on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to repurchase up to 8.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have weighed in on the stock. Cantor Fitzgerald started coverage on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, September 10th. They issued an "overweight" rating and a $61.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company set a $57.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. Evercore ISI increased their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $55.00 to $57.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Wednesday, September 17th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Citizens Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $52.35.

Citizens Financial Group Profile

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.