Merit Financial Group LLC Acquires 24,316 Shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG)

Merit Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 121.1% in the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 44,398 shares of the bank's stock after buying an additional 24,316 shares during the quarter. Merit Financial Group LLC's holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $1,819,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $26,000. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Colonial Trust Co SC raised its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 673.0% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 889 shares of the bank's stock worth $39,000 after purchasing an additional 774 shares during the period. Finally, Sierra Ocean LLC acquired a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth about $47,000. 94.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CFG. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $50.00 to $44.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Argus set a $45.00 target price on Citizens Financial Group in a report on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $49.00 to $43.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 3rd. Jefferies Financial Group assumed coverage on Citizens Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, May 21st. They set a "buy" rating and a $50.00 target price for the company. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $52.00 to $49.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $47.89.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Down 0.1%

Shares of Citizens Financial Group stock traded down $0.05 on Monday, reaching $41.32. 4,421,964 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,842,965. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $38.27 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.60. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.75. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.60 and a fifty-two week high of $49.25.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last posted 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. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 12.21% and a return on equity of 6.75%. The firm had revenue of $1.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.94 billion. On average, analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 EPS for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.07%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is 53.33%.

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.