Goldman Sachs Group Inc. Grows Position in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Key Points

• Goldman Sachs increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 15.4% in the fourth quarter, buying 678,601 additional shares and bringing its total holdings to 5.08 million shares worth about $296.8 million.
• Citizens Financial Group reported strong quarterly results, with EPS of $1.13 beating estimates and revenue of $2.17 billion slightly above expectations. Revenue rose 12% year over year, and analysts now expect full-year EPS of 5.2.
• Wall Street sentiment remains constructive: 19 analysts rate CFG a Buy and one rates it Hold, with a consensus price target of $70.88. The stock also pays a quarterly dividend of $0.46 per share, or $1.84 annually, for a yield of about 2.9%.

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 15.4% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 5,081,725 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 678,601 shares during the quarter. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. owned approximately 1.18% of Citizens Financial Group worth $296,824,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in CFG. Channing Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the third quarter valued at $7,528,000. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. lifted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 25.7% during the third quarter. Envestnet Asset Management Inc. now owns 687,602 shares of the bank's stock worth $36,553,000 after buying an additional 140,641 shares during the period. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC lifted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 5.3% during the fourth quarter. Allspring Global Investments Holdings LLC now owns 504,595 shares of the bank's stock worth $29,968,000 after buying an additional 25,180 shares during the period. Dynamic Advisor Solutions LLC purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the fourth quarter worth about $2,412,000. Finally, Krilogy Financial LLC purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the third quarter worth about $1,182,000. 94.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms recently weighed in on CFG. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an "overweight" rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Tuesday, March 3rd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $80.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Robert W. Baird upgraded Citizens Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $65.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $68.00 to $68.50 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, April 30th. Nineteen equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.88.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $64.09 on Friday. The stock's 50-day moving average is $62.84 and its 200-day moving average is $60.81. The company has a market cap of $27.10 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.84. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $40.17 and a 12 month high of $68.79.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 8.31% and a net margin of 16.21%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.77 EPS. Equities analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th were issued a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.50%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.16, for a total transaction of $376,068.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 22,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,402,640.40. This trade represents a 21.14% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Susan Lamonica sold 13,258 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.04, for a total value of $769,494.32. Following the sale, the insider owned 165,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,632,956.84. The trade was a 7.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. Company insiders own 0.67% of the company's stock.

Citizens Financial Group Profile

Citizens Financial Group, Inc NYSE: CFG is a bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial services to individuals, small and middle-market businesses, corporations and institutional clients. Headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island, Citizens conducts its banking operations principally through its primary banking subsidiary, Citizens Bank, and serves customers through a combination of branch locations, ATMs and digital channels. The company is publicly traded and operates under the regulatory framework applicable to U.S.

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