Candriam S.C.A. Acquires 40,632 Shares of Citigroup Inc. $C

Key Points

• Candriam S.C.A. increased its Citigroup stake by 11.8% in the first quarter, buying 40,632 more shares and bringing its total holding to 383,662 shares worth about $43.5 million.
• Several other institutional investors also adjusted their positions in Citigroup (NYSE:C), and institutions now own 71.72% of the stock, signaling continued heavy professional ownership.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on Citigroup, with a Moderate Buy consensus and an average price target of $145, while the company also reported strong quarterly earnings and announced a $30 billion share buyback program.

Candriam S.C.A. lifted its holdings in shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Free Report) by 11.8% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 383,662 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 40,632 shares during the quarter. Candriam S.C.A.'s holdings in Citigroup were worth $43,511,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of C. Brighton Jones LLC raised its holdings in shares of Citigroup by 166.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,990 shares of the company's stock worth $1,407,000 after acquiring an additional 12,499 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in Citigroup by 20.5% in the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 9,805 shares of the company's stock valued at $835,000 after acquiring an additional 1,669 shares in the last quarter. United Bank acquired a new position in Citigroup in the 2nd quarter worth $972,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Citigroup by 3,016.7% in the 2nd quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 935 shares of the company's stock worth $80,000 after purchasing an additional 905 shares during the period. Finally, HUB Investment Partners LLC increased its holdings in Citigroup by 26.9% during the 2nd quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 15,287 shares of the company's stock worth $1,301,000 after purchasing an additional 3,238 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.72% of the company's stock.

Insider Activity at Citigroup

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

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently commented on C shares. Evercore set a $143.00 price target on Citigroup in a report on Monday. Piper Sandler reissued an "overweight" rating and issued a $145.00 target price (up from $125.00) on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Citigroup from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, June 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $139.00 price target on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Truist Financial raised their price target on shares of Citigroup from $147.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, June 26th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $145.00.

More Citigroup News

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citi is expected to collect about $70 million in fees from the SK Hynix listing, underscoring strength in its capital markets and advisory franchise. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Multiple pieces this week describe Citigroup (C) as one of the stronger large-bank names ahead of earnings, supported by resilient trading activity, investment banking momentum, and loan demand. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst commentary and TV mentions have also kept Citi in the spotlight as a favored bank stock, suggesting continued institutional confidence in the name. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Earlier coverage said Citi’s Q1 results were the strongest among diversified banks, reinforcing the view that the company is executing well relative to peers. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Citi also announced that SCB is now live with its 24/7 USD Clearing and Citi Token Services, a constructive step in digital payments infrastructure, but not a near-term earnings driver. Article Title

Citigroup Price Performance

Shares of NYSE C opened at $140.67 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The business has a 50-day moving average of $133.71 and a 200-day moving average of $122.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $239.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.43, a PEG ratio of 0.65 and a beta of 1.11. Citigroup Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $85.61 and a fifty-two week high of $147.96.

Citigroup (NYSE:C - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results 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. Citigroup had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 9.35%.The business had revenue of $24.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.96 earnings per share. Citigroup's revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.89 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 7th that permits the company to repurchase $30.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 13.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

About Citigroup

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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