Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. Boosts Holdings in Citigroup Inc. $C

Key Points

• Crossmark Global Holdings increased its Citigroup stake by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, buying 17,137 additional shares and bringing its total holding to 369,636 shares worth about $43.1 million.
• Citigroup announced a $30 billion share buyback and a quarterly dividend of $0.60 per share, signaling confidence in its capital position while rewarding shareholders.
• The bank also reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $3.06 and revenue of $24.63 billion, both above expectations; analysts remain broadly positive with a consensus Moderate Buy rating and average target price of $137.62.

Crossmark Global Holdings Inc. grew its position in shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Free Report) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 369,636 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 17,137 shares during the quarter. Citigroup accounts for 0.6% of Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th largest holding. Crossmark Global Holdings Inc.'s holdings in Citigroup were worth $43,133,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC increased its stake in shares of Citigroup by 87.6% during the third quarter. Wolff Wiese Magana LLC now owns 257 shares of the company's stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 120 shares during the period. Richards Merrill & Peterson Inc. acquired a new stake in Citigroup in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Dunhill Financial LLC lifted its position in Citigroup by 92.2% in the third quarter. Dunhill Financial LLC now owns 319 shares of the company's stock valued at $32,000 after purchasing an additional 153 shares during the period. Luken Investment Analytics LLC purchased a new stake in Citigroup in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $32,000. Finally, Guerra Advisors Inc purchased a new position in shares of Citigroup during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.72% of the company's stock.

Key Citigroup News

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup unveiled a new $30 billion share buyback plan, a strong signal that management sees the stock as undervalued and has confidence in its capital position. RTT News
• Positive Sentiment: The company set a profitability target of 11% to 13% adjusted return on tangible common equity for 2027-2028, with further improvement expected by 2031, reinforcing the turnaround story. Reuters
• Positive Sentiment: Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised its price target on Citigroup to $153 from $140 and kept an outperform rating, showing Wall Street still sees meaningful upside. Benzinga
• Neutral Sentiment: CEO Jane Fraser said the global economy remains resilient, but warned that the market may not yet fully understand the second- and third-order effects of the Iran war and ongoing inflation pressures. YouTube/CNBC
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors viewed the new profit targets as too modest, suggesting Citigroup may still trail peers longer than hoped despite the overhaul. Quartz

Citigroup Stock Down 2.8%

C stock opened at $125.52 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 1.00. The company's 50 day simple moving average is $117.98 and its 200-day simple moving average is $113.01. Citigroup Inc. has a 12 month low of $71.29 and a 12 month high of $135.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $215.26 billion, a PE ratio of 15.55, a P/E/G ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 1.14.

Citigroup (NYSE:C - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.43. The firm had revenue of $24.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.96 billion. Citigroup had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 9.35%.Citigroup's revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.96 EPS. Equities analysts expect that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Stockholders of record on Monday, May 4th will be given a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date is Monday, May 4th. Citigroup's dividend payout ratio is currently 29.74%.

Citigroup announced that its board has approved a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 7th that permits the company to repurchase $30.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 13.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are often a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

C has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. Truist Financial set a $147.00 price target on Citigroup in a research note on Friday, May 1st. Oppenheimer reissued an "outperform" rating and issued a $145.00 target price on shares of Citigroup in a report on Friday. Zacks Research lowered shares of Citigroup from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on Citigroup from $131.00 to $135.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Citigroup from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a report on Saturday. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $137.62.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Citigroup news, insider Edward Skyler sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The shares were sold at an average price of $131.41, for a total transaction of $3,285,250.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 182,022 shares of the company's stock, valued at $23,919,511.02. This trade represents a 12.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Cantu Ernesto Torres sold 43,173 shares of Citigroup stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The stock was sold at an average price of $111.09, for a total transaction of $4,796,088.57. Following the sale, the insider owned 45,835 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $5,091,810.15. This trade represents a 48.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. In the last ninety days, insiders have sold 92,318 shares of company stock worth $10,764,814. Corporate insiders own 0.11% of the company's stock.

About Citigroup

Citigroup Inc is a global financial services company headquartered in New York City with roots tracing back to the City Bank of New York, founded in 1812. The modern Citigroup was created through the 1998 merger of Citicorp and Travelers Group and has since operated as a diversified bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial products and services to consumers, corporations, governments and institutions worldwide.

Citi's principal businesses include retail and commercial banking, credit card and consumer lending products, wealth management and private banking, and a full suite of institutional services.

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