Equitable Trust Co. Acquires 6,862 Shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C)

Key Points

• Equitable Trust Co. increased its holdings in Citigroup Inc. by 21.5%, owning $2.75 million worth of shares by the end of the 1st quarter.
• Several analysts have issued positive updates on Citigroup, raising price targets and maintaining a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" with a target price of $96.46.
• Citigroup will pay a quarterly dividend of $0.60 on August 22, representing an annual yield of 2.50%, up from the previous dividend of $0.56.

Equitable Trust Co. increased its stake in shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Free Report) by 21.5% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 38,742 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 6,862 shares during the quarter. Equitable Trust Co.'s holdings in Citigroup were worth $2,750,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Orion Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in Citigroup in the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. MorganRosel Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Citigroup during the 1st quarter worth approximately $28,000. American National Bank & Trust purchased a new position in shares of Citigroup during the 1st quarter worth approximately $29,000. Mascagni Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Citigroup during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Finally, Cornerstone Planning Group LLC boosted its position in Citigroup by 68.2% in the 1st quarter. Cornerstone Planning Group LLC now owns 577 shares of the company's stock valued at $38,000 after buying an additional 234 shares during the period. 71.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citigroup Price Performance

Citigroup stock traded up $1.13 during trading hours on Wednesday, hitting $95.61. 3,088,086 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 15,871,194. The firm has a market cap of $178.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.12, a P/E/G ratio of 0.82 and a beta of 1.34. The company has a quick ratio of 0.98, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.61. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $83.13 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $76.58. Citigroup Inc. has a 1-year low of $53.51 and a 1-year high of $96.90.

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

Citigroup Increases Dividend

The company 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 represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.51%. This is a boost from Citigroup's previous quarterly dividend of $0.56. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 4th. Citigroup's payout ratio is presently 33.09%.

Insider Buying and Selling

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

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research firms have commented on C. UBS Group restated a "neutral" rating and issued a $89.00 price objective on shares of Citigroup in a research note on Tuesday, July 15th. Piper Sandler boosted their price target on shares of Citigroup from $84.00 to $104.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods reiterated a "buy" rating on shares of Citigroup in a research note on Wednesday, July 16th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of Citigroup from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Oppenheimer boosted their price target on shares of Citigroup from $123.00 to $124.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Wednesday. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have given a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $96.54.

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.