Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG Shares Sold by Capital World Investors

Key Points

• Capital World Investors reduced its Citizens Financial Group stake by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 403,003 shares. It still held 36.9 million shares, worth about $2.15 billion, or 8.59% of the company.
• Several institutional investors and insiders also adjusted their positions, including recent stock sales by insiders Susan Lamonica and Michelle Moosally. Overall, institutional investors and hedge funds own about 94.9% of CFG, while corporate insiders own 0.67%.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on CFG, with a Moderate Buy consensus and average price target of $70.88. The company also reported stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings and paid a $0.46 quarterly dividend, for a 2.9% yield.

Capital World Investors cut its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 1.1% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 36,886,708 shares of the bank's stock after selling 403,003 shares during the period. Capital World Investors owned about 8.59% of Citizens Financial Group worth $2,154,802,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Activest Wealth Management lifted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 5,600.0% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 513 shares of the bank's stock valued at $30,000 after purchasing an additional 504 shares during the period. Fortitude Family Office LLC increased its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 632.0% in the fourth quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 710 shares of the bank's stock valued at $41,000 after buying an additional 613 shares in the last quarter. Elyxium Wealth LLC purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at $50,000. State of Wyoming purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the second quarter valued at $39,000. Finally, Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. increased its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 261.5% in the fourth quarter. Quest 10 Wealth Builders Inc. now owns 893 shares of the bank's stock valued at $52,000 after buying an additional 646 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Susan Lamonica sold 13,258 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.04, for a total transaction of $769,494.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 165,971 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,632,956.84. This represents a 7.40% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, insider Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of the company's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.16, for a total transaction of $376,068.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 22,565 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,402,640.40. This represents a 21.14% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.67% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on CFG shares. DA Davidson lifted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $75.00 price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Truist Financial lifted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Robert W. Baird raised shares of Citizens Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $65.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, March 9th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Citizens Financial Group currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.88.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Up 0.3%

Shares of NYSE CFG opened at $64.09 on Friday. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $40.17 and a 12-month high of $68.79. The stock has a market cap of $27.10 billion, a PE ratio of 15.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.51 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. The company has a 50-day moving average of $62.84 and a 200 day moving average of $60.81.

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 (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.03. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 8.31%. The company had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.77 EPS. Citizens Financial Group's revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th were paid a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 43.50%.

Citizens Financial Group Company Profile

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding CFG? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.