Citigroup Inc. $C Holdings Lessened by Pzena Investment Management LLC

Key Points

• Pzena Investment Management cut its Citigroup stake by 15.3% in the fourth quarter, selling 1.9 million shares but still holding more than 10.6 million shares worth about $1.24 billion.
• Citigroup’s fundamentals and capital actions remain solid: the bank beat quarterly earnings and revenue estimates, authorized a $30 billion share repurchase program, and declared a $0.60 quarterly dividend.
• Wall Street sentiment is generally constructive, with analysts assigning a consensus “Moderate Buy” rating and an average price target of $137.62, though some governance concerns remain after more shareholders voted against say-on-pay.

Pzena Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Free Report) by 15.3% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 10,615,134 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,916,869 shares during the quarter. Citigroup accounts for approximately 3.7% of Pzena Investment Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 6th biggest holding. Pzena Investment Management LLC owned approximately 0.59% of Citigroup worth $1,238,680,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. raised its position in shares of Citigroup by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 163,239,926 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,048,467,000 after buying an additional 4,938,923 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors raised its position in shares of Citigroup by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 47,262,626 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,797,292,000 after buying an additional 2,871,074 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its holdings in Citigroup by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 33,040,513 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,353,612,000 after purchasing an additional 879,056 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its holdings in Citigroup by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 32,870,559 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,336,362,000 after purchasing an additional 580,027 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in Citigroup by 17.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 28,125,995 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,854,788,000 after purchasing an additional 4,211,099 shares during the last quarter. 71.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citigroup News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup shareholders approved an expanded stock incentive plan at the company’s May 20 annual meeting, which should give management more flexibility to retain and motivate employees through equity compensation. Citigroup Shareholders Approve Expanded Stock Incentive Plan
• Positive Sentiment: Several commentary pieces highlighted Citigroup as undervalued or attractive for income-focused investors, reinforcing the view that the stock still has room to rerate after recent earnings improvement. 5 Most Undervalued US Stocks According to Hedge Funds Why Citigroup (C) is a Top Dividend Stock for Your Portfolio
• Neutral Sentiment: Citigroup also remained active in market commentary on India IPOs and currency controls, but these reports are more about its broader banking views than a direct business update for the company. Citi sees India IPOs hitting fresh records despite challenges Citi Sees India IPOs Hitting Fresh Records Despite Challenges
• Neutral Sentiment: There was also a report that Trump backed away from requiring banks to collect citizenship information, which slightly reduces regulatory overhang but does not materially change Citigroup’s near-term fundamentals. Trump backs down from idea of banks collecting citizenship information
• Negative Sentiment: On the other hand, Citi faced fresh governance scrutiny after a separate report said more shareholders voted against the bank’s say-on-pay proposal, signaling some dissatisfaction with executive compensation practices. More Citi shareholders vote 'no' on say-on-pay

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Citigroup news, insider Edward Skyler sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were 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 owned 182,022 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $23,919,511.02. This trade represents a 12.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction 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 stock was sold at an average price of $125.30, for a total transaction of $265,260.10. Following the transaction, the director directly owned 12,194 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,527,908.20. This trade represents a 14.79% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts recently commented on the stock. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $139.00 price target on shares of Citigroup in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Citigroup from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their price target on shares of Citigroup from $131.00 to $135.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Thursday, April 30th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Citigroup from $140.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Oppenheimer reiterated an "outperform" rating and set a $145.00 price target on shares of Citigroup in a report on Friday, May 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Citigroup presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $137.62.

Citigroup Price Performance

NYSE C opened at $125.19 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. The firm's 50 day moving average price is $120.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $114.77. Citigroup Inc. has a 52-week low of $71.65 and a 52-week high of $135.29. The company has a market cap of $213.51 billion, a PE ratio of 15.51, a P/E/G ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.14.

Citigroup (NYSE:C - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $3.06 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.63 by $0.43. The company had revenue of $24.63 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.96 billion. Citigroup had a net margin of 9.35% and a return on equity of 9.19%. Citigroup's revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.96 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Thursday, May 7th that permits the company to repurchase $30.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to buy up to 13.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Citigroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders 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 (DPR) is currently 29.74%.

Citigroup 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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