Essential Partners LLC Cuts Holdings in Citigroup Inc. $C

Key Points

• Essential Partners LLC cut its Citigroup stake by 81.3% in the second quarter, selling 18,313 shares and retaining 4,217 shares worth approximately $590,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds still own 71.72% of Citigroup.
• Citigroup reported quarterly EPS of $3.15, exceeding estimates of $2.74, while revenue rose 14.5% year over year to $24.77 billion. The bank also raised its quarterly dividend to $0.67 per share and has authorization for a $30 billion share-repurchase program.
• Citi is expanding its institutional-services business with planned Bitcoin custody and its new Custody+ platform, though it also faces regulatory risk from an $86.4 million settlement involving alleged manipulation of Mexico’s bond market.

Essential Partners LLC lessened its position in shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Free Report) by 81.3% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 4,217 shares of the company's stock after selling 18,313 shares during the period. Essential Partners LLC's holdings in Citigroup were worth $590,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in C. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in shares of Citigroup by 166.9% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,990 shares of the company's stock worth $1,407,000 after purchasing an additional 12,499 shares during the period. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its position in Citigroup by 20.5% during the 2nd quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 9,805 shares of the company's stock worth $835,000 after purchasing an additional 1,669 shares in the last quarter. United Bank purchased a new position in Citigroup in the second quarter valued at approximately $972,000. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. raised its holdings in Citigroup by 3,016.7% in the second quarter. Osterweis Capital Management Inc. now owns 935 shares of the company's stock valued at $80,000 after buying an additional 905 shares during the period. Finally, HUB Investment Partners LLC lifted its position in Citigroup by 26.9% during the second quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC now owns 15,287 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,301,000 after buying an additional 3,238 shares in the last quarter. 71.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about Citigroup

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup plans to launch institutional Bitcoin custody services later this year, allowing clients to hold digital and traditional assets under one framework. The offering could create new fee revenue, strengthen Citi’s institutional-asset franchise and help the bank compete with major Wall Street rivals in digital-asset infrastructure. Bitcoin Custody for Institutional Clients Is Coming to Citi Later This Year
• Positive Sentiment: Citi also introduced its Custody+ platform, featuring continuous settlement, artificial-intelligence tools and an in-house tokenization rail through Citi Token Services. The platform supports the bank’s strategy of modernizing custody and transaction services, although the immediate earnings contribution remains uncertain. Citigroup Rolls Out Custody+ Platform With Bitcoin Services and Continuous Settlement
• Neutral Sentiment: Citi’s research team said prediction markets point toward a divided U.S. government after the midterm elections and outlined potential trading implications. The analysis may influence views on regulation, fiscal policy and bank-sector conditions, but it does not represent a direct change to Citigroup’s fundamentals. Prediction Markets See a Divided Government After Midterm Elections
• Negative Sentiment: Citigroup and five other banks agreed to an $86.4 million settlement resolving allegations of manipulation in Mexico’s bond market. Citi’s share of the payment was not specified, but the resolution creates a modest cost and reinforces regulatory and litigation risks for the bank. Major US Banks Agree to $86.4M Settlement in Mexican Bond-Rigging Case

Citigroup Stock Down 0.6%

Shares of NYSE:C opened at $137.66 on Wednesday. The company has a quick ratio of 0.99, a current ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71. Citigroup Inc. has a 52-week low of $90.68 and a 52-week high of $147.96. The company has a 50 day moving average of $137.54 and a two-hundred day moving average of $126.02. The company has a market capitalization of $234.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.63 and a beta of 1.12.

Citigroup (NYSE:C - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $3.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.74 by $0.41. Citigroup had a net margin of 10.23% and a return on equity of 10.15%. The company had revenue of $24.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.74 billion. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.96 earnings per share. The business's quarterly revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Citigroup Inc. will post 11.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, August 28th. Investors of record on Monday, August 3rd will be paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. This is a positive change from Citigroup's previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Citigroup's payout ratio is presently 28.94%.

Citigroup announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Thursday, May 7th that allows the company to buyback $30.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 13.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are typically a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of Citigroup from $150.00 to $142.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, August 3rd. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Citigroup from $154.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods upped their price target on shares of Citigroup from $140.00 to $153.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, May 8th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Citigroup from $135.50 to $149.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Citigroup from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, June 18th. Two research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $145.22.

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.

Want to see what other hedge funds are holding C? Visit HoldingsChannel.com to get the latest 13F filings and insider trades for Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Free Report).

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source