Blueshift Asset Management LLC Acquires Shares of 13,494 Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG)

Key Points

• Blueshift Asset Management LLC invested approximately $553,000 in Citizens Financial Group, acquiring 13,494 shares in the first quarter.
• Citizens Financial Group reported a quarterly earnings result of $0.92 per share, surpassing estimates, with revenues increasing by 3.8% year-over-year to $2.04 billion.
• The bank announced a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 3.6% and a dividend payout ratio of 51.06%.

Blueshift Asset Management LLC bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund bought 13,494 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $553,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Heartland Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $398,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd grew its position in Citizens Financial Group by 19.2% during the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 54,870 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,248,000 after acquiring an additional 8,851 shares during the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 425.7% in the 1st quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 26,104 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,069,000 after purchasing an additional 21,138 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors bought a new stake in Citizens Financial Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $410,000. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 37.9% during the first quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,126 shares of the bank's stock valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 94.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts recently commented on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Citizens Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $48.50 to $52.00 in a research note on Friday. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $54.00 to $43.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 7th. The firm moved its midcap bank industry view from Attractive to In-line, saying “higher and faster than expected” tariffs raise recession risks, will weigh on loan growth and in-turn, forward earnings and multiples. The group is “cheap,” but weaker for longer loan growth and inverted yield curve limit upside catalysts. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Citizens Financial Group from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Piper Sandler cut their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $48.00 to $43.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Stephens lowered their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $53.00 to $48.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 7th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Citizens Financial Group presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $51.53.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Down 1.9%

CFG traded down $0.93 during trading on Friday, reaching $46.79. The stock had a trading volume of 5,798,990 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,702,535. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. The company has a market capitalization of $20.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.22, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 0.78. The stock's 50 day moving average is $44.60 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.67. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $32.60 and a one year high of $49.98.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.92 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates 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 firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.01 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $0.82 EPS. The company's revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st will be given a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. Citizens Financial Group's payout ratio is currently 51.06%.

Citizens Financial Group declared that its board has authorized a share buyback plan on Friday, June 13th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the bank to reacquire up to 8.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are generally an indication that the company's leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Citizens Financial Group Company 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.