Goelzer Investment Management Inc. Sells 44,582 Shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG)

Goelzer Investment Management Inc. lessened its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 22.2% during the first quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 156,595 shares of the bank's stock after selling 44,582 shares during the quarter. Goelzer Investment Management Inc.'s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $6,416,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Capital World Investors lifted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 3.3% in the fourth quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 35,900,115 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,570,989,000 after purchasing an additional 1,131,838 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 10,929,591 shares of the bank's stock valued at $477,043,000 after purchasing an additional 124,860 shares in the last quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP lifted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 27.8% during the fourth quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 10,570,083 shares of the bank's stock valued at $462,547,000 after purchasing an additional 2,298,040 shares in the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 20.9% during the fourth quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. now owns 9,683,111 shares of the bank's stock worth $423,733,000 after purchasing an additional 1,672,204 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada grew its position in Citizens Financial Group by 6.4% in the 4th quarter. Royal Bank of Canada now owns 6,247,238 shares of the bank's stock worth $273,378,000 after purchasing an additional 374,850 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CFG has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Argus set a $45.00 target price on Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group raised their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. Citigroup reissued a "buy" rating and issued a $57.00 price target (up from $51.00) on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Wednesday. Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $50.00 to $44.00 and set an "outperform" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Finally, TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Thursday, May 15th. They issued a "buy" rating and a $57.00 price target on the stock. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Citizens Financial Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $48.68.

Citizens Financial Group Price Performance

Citizens Financial Group stock traded up $0.69 during mid-day trading on Thursday, hitting $47.72. 3,302,892 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 4,842,877. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a quick ratio of 0.83 and a current ratio of 0.85. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $32.60 and a one year high of $49.25. The stock has a market cap of $20.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.80 and a beta of 0.76. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $40.72 and a 200-day moving average price of $42.11.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The bank reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $1.94 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.84% and a net margin of 12.76%. On average, equities analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th were paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 53.33%.

Citizens Financial Group announced that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Friday, June 13th that authorizes the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the bank to buy up to 8.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company's management 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.