Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC Purchases Shares of 9,327 Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Key Points

• Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC purchased 9,327 shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. during the second quarter, valued at approximately $417,000.
• Citizens Financial Group reported a quarterly earnings per share (EPS) of $0.92, exceeding expectations and marking a 3.8% year-over-year revenue growth.
• The company has initiated a $1.50 billion stock repurchase program, reflecting confidence in its stock's value and allowing for the purchase of up to 8.5% of its shares.

Counterpoint Mutual Funds LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 9,327 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $417,000.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in CFG. Heartland Bank & Trust Co bought a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at $398,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd raised its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 19.2% during the first quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 54,870 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,248,000 after purchasing an additional 8,851 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. lifted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 425.7% in the first quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 26,104 shares of the bank's stock worth $1,069,000 after purchasing an additional 21,138 shares during the period. World Investment Advisors bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the 1st quarter valued at about $410,000. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 37.9% during the 1st quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,126 shares of the bank's stock valued at $292,000 after buying an additional 1,957 shares during the period. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on CFG shares. Wells Fargo & Company set a $57.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, July 2nd. Citigroup upped their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $60.00 to $65.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday. DA Davidson lifted their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $49.00 to $55.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Raymond James Financial boosted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $48.00 to $57.00 and gave the stock a "strong-buy" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Citizens Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their target price for the company from $48.50 to $52.00 in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Two analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and three have given a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $52.35.

Citizens Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:CFG opened at $53.03 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $22.88 billion, a PE ratio of 16.12, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $49.98 and a 200-day moving average of $43.77. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $32.60 and a one year high of $53.89.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.92 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.04. The business had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $2.01 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.94% and a net margin of 13.26%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $0.82 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.2%. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is currently 51.06%.

Citizens Financial Group declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase program on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to purchase up to 8.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

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.

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