BNP Paribas Financial Markets Cuts Stake in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Financial Markets cut its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 28.3% in the fourth quarter, though it still held 627,219 shares valued at about $36.6 million.
• Several analysts remain bullish on CFG, with major firms reiterating or raising buy/outperform ratings and the consensus target price standing at $70.88.
• Citizens Financial Group reported strong quarterly results, beating EPS and revenue estimates, and also paid a $0.46 quarterly dividend for a 3.0% annualized yield.

BNP Paribas Financial Markets decreased its holdings in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 28.3% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 627,219 shares of the bank's stock after selling 247,791 shares during the period. BNP Paribas Financial Markets owned approximately 0.15% of Citizens Financial Group worth $36,636,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Activest Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 5,600.0% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 513 shares of the bank's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. State of Wyoming purchased a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 632.0% in the 4th quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 710 shares of the bank's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 613 shares in the last quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2,703.0% in the 2nd quarter. Kestra Investment Management LLC now owns 925 shares of the bank's stock valued at $41,000 after purchasing an additional 892 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $50,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.90% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.16, for a total value of $376,068.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 22,565 shares in the company, valued at $1,402,640.40. This trade represents a 21.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, insider Susan Lamonica sold 13,258 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.04, for a total transaction of $769,494.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 165,971 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,632,956.84. The trade was a 7.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.67% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on CFG. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $75.00 price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Citizens Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $65.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, March 9th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $68.00 to $68.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.88.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $61.54 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company has a 50-day moving average of $62.65 and a 200 day moving average of $60.70. The firm has a market cap of $26.03 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.55, a PEG ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 0.68. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $39.69 and a 1 year high of $68.79.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.03. The company 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%. Citizens Financial Group's quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business earned $0.77 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th were paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.0%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.50%.

About Citizens Financial Group

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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