Gulf International Bank UK Ltd Lowers Stake in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Key Points

• Gulf International Bank UK Ltd reduced its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 32.2%, selling 12,146 shares to own 25,609 shares valued at approximately $1,049,000.
• Several analysts have raised their price targets for Citizens Financial Group, with Raymond James increasing its target from $48.00 to $57.00, and 14 analysts assigning a buy rating for the stock.
• The company recently declared a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share, representing an annualized dividend yield of 3.5%, and authorized a buyback of up to $1.50 billion in shares.

Gulf International Bank UK Ltd trimmed its position in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 32.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 25,609 shares of the bank's stock after selling 12,146 shares during the period. Gulf International Bank UK Ltd's holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $1,049,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Klingman & Associates LLC boosted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 9.2% in the first quarter. Klingman & Associates LLC now owns 447,198 shares of the bank's stock valued at $18,322,000 after purchasing an additional 37,574 shares during the last quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 3.2% in the first quarter. Resona Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 142,586 shares of the bank's stock valued at $5,825,000 after purchasing an additional 4,437 shares during the last quarter. Arrowpoint Investment Partners Singapore Pte. Ltd. purchased a new stake in Citizens Financial Group in the first quarter valued at $266,000. Public Sector Pension Investment Board boosted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 2.3% in the first quarter. Public Sector Pension Investment Board now owns 116,921 shares of the bank's stock valued at $4,790,000 after purchasing an additional 2,617 shares during the last quarter. Finally, AIA Group Ltd boosted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 26.7% in the first quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 30,316 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,242,000 after purchasing an additional 6,384 shares during the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts have recently issued reports on CFG shares. Cowen started coverage on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 14th. They set a "buy" rating on the stock. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $57.00 to $60.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. Barclays increased their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $49.00 to $55.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. TD Cowen began coverage on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, May 15th. They set a "buy" rating and a $57.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Citizens Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and raised their price target for the company from $48.50 to $52.00 in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Four research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have assigned a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Citizens Financial Group currently has an average rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $51.53.

Citizens Financial Group Price Performance

CFG stock traded up $0.29 during mid-day trading on Monday, reaching $48.57. The company's stock had a trading volume of 2,613,474 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,163,797. The stock has a market cap of $20.95 billion, a PE ratio of 14.76, a P/E/G ratio of 0.53 and a beta of 0.78. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.60 and a fifty-two week high of $49.98. The company's 50 day moving average is $46.23 and its two-hundred day moving average is $42.69.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.92 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.01 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 13.26% and a return on equity of 6.94%. Citizens Financial Group's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $0.82 EPS. Equities research analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 EPS for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 31st were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 31st. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 51.06%.

Citizens Financial Group announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a share buyback program on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to reacquire up to 8.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Citizens Financial Group Company Profile

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.