Teacher Retirement System of Texas Boosts Stake in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG)

Teacher Retirement System of Texas increased its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 45.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 609,645 shares of the bank's stock after acquiring an additional 190,569 shares during the period. Teacher Retirement System of Texas owned approximately 0.14% of Citizens Financial Group worth $24,977,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Salzhauer Michael grew its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 1,034.7% in the fourth quarter. Salzhauer Michael now owns 179,301 shares of the bank's stock valued at $7,846,000 after purchasing an additional 163,500 shares during the period. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 18.1% during the 4th quarter. Smartleaf Asset Management LLC now owns 5,474 shares of the bank's stock valued at $238,000 after buying an additional 838 shares in the last quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp grew its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 115.7% in the 4th quarter. Jones Financial Companies Lllp now owns 11,072 shares of the bank's stock valued at $485,000 after acquiring an additional 5,938 shares during the period. SBI Securities Co. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth $66,000. Finally, Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC increased its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 1,076.0% in the 4th quarter. Steward Partners Investment Advisory LLC now owns 67,267 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,944,000 after acquiring an additional 61,547 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.90% of the company's stock.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of Citizens Financial Group stock traded up $0.69 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $47.72. The stock had a trading volume of 3,302,892 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,836,498. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $41.14 and a two-hundred day moving average of $42.14. The firm has a market cap of $20.86 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a quick ratio of 0.83, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 12-month low of $32.60 and a 12-month high of $49.25.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The bank reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.84% and a net margin of 12.76%. Sell-side analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Friday, June 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the bank to purchase up to 8.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often an indication that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 53.33%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts have recently issued reports on CFG shares. TD Cowen assumed coverage on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $57.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $54.00 to $43.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 7th. The firm moved its midcap bank industry view from Attractive to In-line, saying “higher and faster than expected” tariffs raise recession risks, will weigh on loan growth and in-turn, forward earnings and multiples. The group is “cheap,” but weaker for longer loan growth and inverted yield curve limit upside catalysts. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods cut their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $49.00 to $45.00 and set a "market perform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada decreased their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $50.00 to $44.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, Barclays lowered their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $52.00 to $49.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $48.68.

About Citizens Financial Group

Citizens Financial Group, Inc operates as the bank holding company that provides retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, corporations, and institutions in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Consumer Banking and Commercial Banking.