Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG Shares Acquired by National Pension Service

Key Points

• National Pension Service sharply increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group, boosting its holdings by 520.7% in the fourth quarter to 839,262 shares worth about $49.0 million.
• Analysts remain generally upbeat on CFG, with 19 Buy ratings and only one Hold; the consensus rating is Moderate Buy with an average target price of $70.88.
• Citizens Financial Group reported solid quarterly results, beating EPS estimates at $1.13 per share and growing revenue 12% year over year, while also paying a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share.

National Pension Service lifted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 520.7% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 839,262 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 704,054 shares during the period. National Pension Service owned about 0.20% of Citizens Financial Group worth $49,021,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in CFG. Activest Wealth Management increased its position in 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 acquiring an additional 504 shares during the period. State of Wyoming acquired a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at about $39,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its position in 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 acquiring an additional 613 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC increased its position in 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 acquiring an additional 892 shares during the period. Finally, Elyxium Wealth LLC acquired a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $50,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.90% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Citigroup restated a "buy" rating on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Friday, May 8th. Weiss Ratings upgraded Citizens Financial Group from a "buy (b-)" rating to a "buy (b)" rating in a research report on Wednesday, May 6th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $68.00 to $68.50 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Nineteen 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 presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.88.

Citizens Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of CFG opened at $62.17 on Monday. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $39.40 and a twelve month high of $68.79. The stock's 50 day moving average is $62.39 and its two-hundred day moving average is $60.50. The firm has a market capitalization of $26.29 billion, a PE ratio of 14.70, a P/E/G ratio of 0.49 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.03. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 8.31% and a net margin of 16.21%.The company had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $0.77 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

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

Insider Activity at Citizens Financial Group

In other news, insider Susan Lamonica sold 13,258 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.04, for a total transaction of $769,494.32. Following the sale, the insider owned 165,971 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,632,956.84. The trade was a 7.40% 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 Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of the business's stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.16, for a total value of $376,068.00. Following the sale, 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 SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.67% of the stock is owned by insiders.

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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