Bessemer Group Inc. Sells 144,524 Shares of Citigroup Inc. $C

Key Points

• Bessemer Group Inc. cut its Citigroup stake by 5.0% in the fourth quarter, selling 144,524 shares and ending with 2,760,271 shares valued at about $322.1 million.
• Citigroup continues to attract mostly positive analyst coverage, with multiple firms raising or reiterating price targets and the stock carrying a Moderate Buy consensus.
• The bank recently posted better-than-expected quarterly earnings and authorized a $30 billion share buyback, reinforcing management confidence and support for shareholder returns.

Bessemer Group Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Free Report) by 5.0% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,760,271 shares of the company's stock after selling 144,524 shares during the quarter. Bessemer Group Inc. owned about 0.15% of Citigroup worth $322,096,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC raised its holdings in Citigroup by 87.6% in the 3rd quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 257 shares of the company's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares in the last quarter. Richards Merrill & Peterson Inc. acquired a new position in Citigroup in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC raised its holdings in Citigroup by 92.2% in the 3rd quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 319 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after acquiring an additional 153 shares in the last quarter. Luken Investment Analytics LLC acquired a new position in Citigroup in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Guerra Advisors Inc acquired a new position in Citigroup in the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 71.72% of the company's stock.

More Citigroup News

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup is getting credit for its strong earnings beat, with the bank reporting better-than-expected profit and revenue last quarter, which supports the view that operating momentum remains solid.
• Positive Sentiment: The company recently unveiled a $30 billion share buyback authorization, signaling management confidence and a larger return of capital to shareholders, which investors typically view favorably.
• Positive Sentiment: News that Citi plans to increase headcount by about 10% in its Asia-Pacific prime brokerage unit suggests continued expansion in a high-value business line and reinforces the growth narrative. Citigroup to boost Asia prime brokerage staff by 10% this year
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that Citigroup is weighing a broader Asia expansion and a bigger role in U.S.-China business show management is still focused on long-term international growth opportunities. Citigroup Weighs Asia Expansion And US China Role For Future Growth
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary and follow-up articles are mostly reflecting on Citi’s strong post-earnings run and whether the stock can sustain it, but they do not appear to be new fundamental catalysts. Citigroup (C) Down 5.8% Since Last Earnings Report: Can It Rebound?
• Neutral Sentiment: A Citigroup director sold a modest number of shares, which may mildly pressure sentiment, but the transaction was relatively small and does not materially change the investment thesis. SEC Director Sale Filing

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have commented on the company. Evercore set a $139.00 price target on Citigroup in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their price target on Citigroup from $160.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 29th. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Citigroup in a report on Thursday, March 26th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $135.00 price target for the company. Truist Financial set a $147.00 price target on Citigroup in a report on Friday, May 1st. Finally, Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $145.00 target price on shares of Citigroup in a report on Friday, May 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $137.62.

Citigroup Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of C opened at $124.77 on Friday. Citigroup Inc. has a 1 year low of $71.65 and a 1 year high of $135.29. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $119.26 and a 200-day simple moving average of $113.97. The stock has a market cap of $212.81 billion, a PE ratio of 15.46, a PEG ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.14.

Citigroup (NYSE:C - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.43. Citigroup had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 9.35%.The business had revenue of $24.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.96 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.96 EPS. Citigroup's quarterly revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts predict that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup announced that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 7th that allows the company to buyback $30.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 13.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Citigroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 4th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 4th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.9%. Citigroup's dividend payout ratio is presently 29.74%.

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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