Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG Stock: Red Cedar Investment Management LLC Trims Position

Key Points

• Red Cedar Investment Management cut its Citizens Financial Group stake by 18.1% in the third quarter, selling 18,904 shares and retaining 85,607 shares valued at about $5.46 million.
• Citizens reported quarterly EPS of $1.41, slightly above estimates, while revenue of $2.32 billion fell short of forecasts. It also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.52 from $0.46.
• Analysts’ consensus rating was “Moderate Buy,” with an average price target of $76.79; 17 analysts rated the stock Buy and four rated it Hold.

Red Cedar Investment Management LLC trimmed its holdings in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 18.1% during the third quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 85,607 shares of the bank's stock after selling 18,904 shares during the period. Red Cedar Investment Management LLC's holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $5,458,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Nemes Rush Group LLC grew its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 9,937.5% in the third quarter. Nemes Rush Group LLC now owns 12,045 shares of the bank's stock valued at $768,000 after purchasing an additional 11,925 shares during the period. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc increased its position in Citizens Financial Group by 9.5% during the third quarter. AEGON ASSET MANAGEMENT UK Plc now owns 1,353,041 shares of the bank's stock worth $78,842,000 after purchasing an additional 117,183 shares during the last quarter. Fairscale Capital LLC acquired a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the third quarter worth approximately $209,000. Retirement Systems of Alabama raised its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 1,344.9% during the third quarter. Retirement Systems of Alabama now owns 1,283,586 shares of the bank's stock worth $81,841,000 after purchasing an additional 1,194,749 shares during the period. Finally, Private Management Group Inc. raised its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 200.9% during the third quarter. Private Management Group Inc. now owns 122,059 shares of the bank's stock worth $7,782,000 after purchasing an additional 81,494 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.90% of the company's stock.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Up 3.2%

CFG opened at $65.27 on Tuesday. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $65.78 and a 200 day moving average price of $65.65. The company has a market cap of $27.36 billion, a PE ratio of 13.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 0.74. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $49.00 and a 1 year high of $75.33. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.74, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.86.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Friday, October 16th. The bank reported $1.41 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.39 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $2.32 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.34 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 18.07% and a return on equity of 9.52%. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.05 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.30 earnings per share for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 13th. Stockholders of record on Friday, October 30th will be given a $0.52 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, October 30th. This is an increase from Citizens Financial Group's previous quarterly dividend of $0.46. This represents a $2.08 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.2%. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.85%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on CFG. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $89.00 to $87.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 19th. DA Davidson set a $82.00 price objective on Citizens Financial Group in a report on Monday, October 19th. Cantor Fitzgerald cut their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $84.00 to $78.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, October 14th. Robert W. Baird lifted their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $90.00 to $80.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, September 24th. Seventeen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $76.79.

Citizens Financial Group Profile

Citizens Financial Group, Inc is a bank holding company headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island. Through Citizens Bank and related businesses, it provides retail and commercial banking services to individuals, businesses and institutions.

Its offerings include checking and savings accounts, mortgages, personal and business loans, credit cards, wealth management, and commercial lending and cash-management services. The company also provides capital markets and other financial services to corporate clients.

Citizens traces its history to High Street Bank, founded in Providence in 1828.

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