Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG Stock Position Lessened by First Trust Advisors LP

Key Points

• First Trust Advisors LP reduced its Citizens Financial Group stake by 9.7% in the first quarter, selling 122,515 shares and leaving it with about 1.14 million shares worth $68.3 million.
• Analysts are broadly bullish on CFG, with multiple firms raising price targets; the stock now carries a consensus Moderate Buy rating and an average target price of $78.55.
• Citizens Financial Group reported strong quarterly results, earning $1.30 per share on revenue of $2.28 billion, both above expectations, and it also announced a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share.

First Trust Advisors LP trimmed its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 9.7% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 1,138,819 shares of the bank's stock after selling 122,515 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned approximately 0.27% of Citizens Financial Group worth $68,295,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth about $26,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the first quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Activest Wealth Management boosted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 5,600.0% in the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 513 shares of the bank's stock valued at $30,000 after acquiring an additional 504 shares in the last quarter. Finally, DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CFG has been the topic of several recent analyst reports. Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $68.50 to $76.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $73.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Royal Bank Of Canada boosted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Truist Financial upped their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $72.00 to $80.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $78.55.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Up 0.0%

NYSE CFG opened at $71.80 on Friday. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $45.90 and a 12 month high of $74.70. The company has a market capitalization of $30.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.58, a PEG ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.67. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $67.48 and its 200 day simple moving average is $64.05. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The bank reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.25 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 8.85%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.92 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 30th will be given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, July 30th. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is 39.91%.

Insider Activity at Citizens Financial Group

In other news, insider Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.16, for a total transaction of $376,068.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 22,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,402,640.40. This represents a 21.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.67% of the company's stock.

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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