Carnegie Investment Counsel Buys 132,136 Shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Key Points

• Carnegie Investment Counsel purchased 132,136 shares of Citizens Financial Group in the third quarter, valued at approximately $8.4 million. Institutional investors collectively own 94.9% of CFG’s outstanding shares.
• Citizens Financial Group exceeded quarterly earnings expectations, reporting $1.41 per share versus the $1.39 consensus estimate, while revenue came in at $2.32 billion. Analysts maintain a “Moderate Buy” consensus rating with an average price target of $77.47.
• The bank increased its quarterly dividend from $0.46 to $0.52 per share, equating to an annualized dividend of $2.08 and a 3.2% yield.

Carnegie Investment Counsel bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm bought 132,136 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $8,425,000.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $3,415,046,000. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 7,979.7% in the 3rd quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 12,165,352 shares of the bank's stock worth $775,663,000 after acquiring an additional 12,014,785 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 1,252.4% in the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 9,204,563 shares of the bank's stock worth $586,883,000 after purchasing an additional 8,523,938 shares during the last quarter. Bank of America Corp DE purchased a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $223,386,000. Finally, Legal & General Group Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the second quarter valued at approximately $207,234,000. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CFG opened at $64.25 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.86. The firm has a fifty day moving average price of $67.66 and a 200-day moving average price of $67.16. The stock has a market cap of $27.06 billion, a PE ratio of 12.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.72. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $49.00 and a 1 year high of $75.33.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, October 16th. The bank reported $1.41 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.39 by $0.02. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 9.52% and a net margin of 18.07%. The firm had revenue of $2.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.05 earnings per share. Equities analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.30 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be given a dividend of $0.52 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, October 30th. This is a positive change from Citizens Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.08 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 41.85%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, CEO Bruce Van Saun sold 129,369 shares of the business's stock in a transaction on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total value of $9,323,623.83. Following the sale, the chief executive officer owned 1,140,763 shares in the company, valued at approximately $82,214,789.41. The trade was a 10.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.67% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CFG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. DA Davidson set a $82.00 target price on Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Monday. Raymond James Financial reaffirmed a "strong-buy" rating on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Friday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $78.00 to $72.50 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 2nd. Citigroup decreased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $84.00 to $74.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald lowered their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have issued a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $77.47.

Citizens Financial Group Profile

Citizens Financial Group, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. Its principal subsidiary, Citizens Bank, provides banking and financial services to consumers, small businesses, middle-market companies, large corporations and institutional clients.

The company offers consumer deposit accounts, residential mortgages, home equity financing, credit cards, personal loans and other lending products. Its commercial banking activities include business loans, equipment financing, treasury management, capital markets services and investment banking.

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