Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. Boosts Stock Holdings in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C)

Key Points

• Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. significantly increased its stake in Citigroup Inc., raising holdings by 1,349.0% in the first quarter, owning a total of 213,986 shares worth approximately $15.19 million.
• Several large investors have also expanded their positions in Citigroup, contributing to a total institutional ownership of 71.72% of the company's stock.
• Citigroup recently announced a quarterly dividend increase, raising it from $0.56 to $0.60, reflecting a dividend yield of 2.5%.

Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc. raised its holdings in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Free Report) by 1,349.0% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 213,986 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 199,218 shares during the period. Cookson Peirce & Co. Inc.'s holdings in Citigroup were worth $15,191,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of C. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. grew its stake in Citigroup by 124.4% during the first quarter. Vestmark Advisory Solutions Inc. now owns 6,686 shares of the company's stock valued at $475,000 after acquiring an additional 3,707 shares in the last quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc. grew its stake in Citigroup by 0.5% during the first quarter. Sit Investment Associates Inc. now owns 112,645 shares of the company's stock valued at $7,997,000 after acquiring an additional 570 shares in the last quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. grew its stake in Citigroup by 6.2% during the first quarter. William B. Walkup & Associates Inc. now owns 4,285 shares of the company's stock valued at $304,000 after acquiring an additional 250 shares in the last quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Citigroup by 6.0% during the first quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 4,863 shares of the company's stock valued at $345,000 after acquiring an additional 277 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Citigroup by 5.3% during the first quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 57,488 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,081,000 after acquiring an additional 2,904 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 71.72% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on C shares. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of Citigroup from $95.00 to $100.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 16th. Cowen initiated coverage on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Wednesday, May 14th. They set a "hold" rating for the company. Evercore ISI set a $77.00 price objective on shares of Citigroup in a report on Monday, July 7th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Citigroup from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods restated a "buy" rating on shares of Citigroup in a report on Wednesday, July 16th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $96.54.

Insider Buying and Selling at Citigroup

In other news, Director Peter B. Henry sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, July 16th. The shares were sold at an average price of $90.40, for a total value of $271,200.00. Following the transaction, the director owned 2,140 shares in the company, valued at $193,456. This represents a 58.37% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this link. 0.08% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Citigroup Stock Performance

Shares of Citigroup stock opened at $94.72 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $174.37 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.99, a PEG ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.38. The firm's 50-day moving average is $87.15 and its 200 day moving average is $77.67. Citigroup Inc. has a 1 year low of $55.51 and a 1 year high of $96.90. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99.

Citigroup (NYSE:C - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, July 15th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.61 by $0.35. The business had revenue of $21.67 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $20.75 billion. Citigroup had a net margin of 8.44% and a return on equity of 7.29%. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 8.2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.52 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Citigroup Inc. will post 7.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, August 4th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. This is a boost from Citigroup's previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. The ex-dividend date is Monday, August 4th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.5%. Citigroup's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 35.45%.

Citigroup Profile

Citigroup Inc, a diversified financial service holding company, provides various financial product and services to consumers, corporations, governments, and institutions worldwide. It operates through five segments: Services, Markets, Banking, U.S. Personal Banking, and Wealth. The Services segment includes Treasury and Trade Solutions, which provides cash management, trade, and working capital solutions to multinational corporations, financial institutions, and public sector organizations; and Securities Services, such as cross-border support for clients, local market expertise, post-trade technologies, data solutions, and various securities services solutions.

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