Citigroup Inc. $C Stock Holdings Trimmed by Rock Point Advisors LLC

Key Points

• Rock Point Advisors LLC trimmed its Citigroup stake by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, though Citigroup remains its largest holding at 5.7% of its portfolio.
• Citigroup reported better-than-expected quarterly results, with earnings per share of $3.06 and revenue of $24.63 billion, both above analyst estimates.
• The bank’s board approved a $30 billion stock buyback and also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share, signaling continued capital returns to shareholders.

Rock Point Advisors LLC reduced its position in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Free Report) by 4.5% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 195,132 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,235 shares during the quarter. Citigroup accounts for about 5.7% of Rock Point Advisors LLC's holdings, making the stock its largest holding. Rock Point Advisors LLC's holdings in Citigroup were worth $22,770,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors also recently modified their holdings of the company. Donaldson Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of Citigroup during the 3rd quarter valued at $58,994,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC lifted its stake in Citigroup by 17.3% in the third quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 663,416 shares of the company's stock worth $67,337,000 after purchasing an additional 98,082 shares during the last quarter. Gunderson Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Citigroup during the fourth quarter valued at about $7,165,000. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in Citigroup by 166.9% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,990 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,407,000 after buying an additional 12,499 shares during the period. Finally, Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. grew its stake in shares of Citigroup by 12.7% during the third quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. now owns 102,255 shares of the company's stock valued at $10,379,000 after buying an additional 11,512 shares during the last quarter. 71.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at Citigroup

In other news, insider Cantu Ernesto Torres sold 43,173 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.09, for a total value of $4,796,088.57. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 45,835 shares in the company, valued at $5,091,810.15. This trade represents a 48.50% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John Cunningham Dugan sold 2,117 shares of the stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.30, for a total value of $265,260.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director 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. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. In the last quarter, insiders sold 94,435 shares of company stock valued at $11,030,074. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on C. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on Citigroup from $160.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $139.00 price target on shares of Citigroup in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. UBS Group reiterated a "neutral" rating and issued a $132.00 price objective on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Thursday, January 15th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their price objective on Citigroup from $140.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group began coverage on shares of Citigroup in a report on Thursday, March 26th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $135.00 target price on the stock. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Citigroup presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $137.62.

Trending Headlines about Citigroup

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts said Citigroup’s strong earnings, excess capital, and active buybacks are supporting a robust capital return strategy, which is positive for shareholder value. What's Fueling Citigroup's Robust Capital Return Strategy?
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup’s recent earnings report beat expectations on both profit and revenue, helping support investor confidence in the bank’s operating momentum.
• Neutral Sentiment: Citigroup disclosed routine participation notifications and a director stock sale, but neither item appears large enough to materially change the long-term investment thesis. SEC Director Sale Filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Citi strategists’ market commentary on US equities and the Kospi index reflects the firm’s broader research activity, but it is not a direct catalyst for Citigroup shares. Citi’s Manthey Says US Stock Outperformance Has Further to Run
• Negative Sentiment: Director John Cunningham Dugan sold 2,117 shares, a modest insider sale that could slightly weigh on sentiment even though the amount is not especially large.

Citigroup Price Performance

Shares of C stock opened at $126.32 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. Citigroup Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $71.65 and a fifty-two week high of $135.29. The firm has a market cap of $215.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.14. The business's 50 day moving average price is $118.72 and its 200-day moving average price is $113.60.

Citigroup (NYSE:C - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly 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. Citigroup had a net margin of 9.35% and a return on equity of 9.19%. The business had revenue of $24.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.96 earnings per share. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Citigroup announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 7th that authorizes the company to repurchase $30.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 13.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically a sign that the company's management believes its stock is undervalued.

Citigroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 4th will be issued a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date 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 is 29.74%.

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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