Hodges Capital Management Inc. Increases Stock Holdings in Citigroup Inc. $C

Key Points

• Hodges Capital Management increased its Citigroup stake by 10.6% in the first quarter, buying 7,389 additional shares and bringing its total to 76,792 shares worth about $8.7 million.
• Citigroup reported strong quarterly results, posting EPS of $3.06 versus estimates of $2.63 and revenue of $24.63 billion, while also raising its profile with a $30 billion share repurchase authorization.
• Analysts remain broadly positive on the stock, with a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $139.62, though recent insider sales by two executives were also disclosed.

Hodges Capital Management Inc. boosted its stake in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C - Free Report) by 10.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 76,792 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 7,389 shares during the quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc.'s holdings in Citigroup were worth $8,709,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Truist Financial Corp raised its holdings in shares of Citigroup by 4.7% during the fourth quarter. Truist Financial Corp now owns 375,977 shares of the company's stock valued at $43,873,000 after buying an additional 16,744 shares during the last quarter. Gunderson Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in Citigroup in the 4th quarter worth approximately $7,165,000. Brighton Jones LLC grew its holdings in Citigroup by 166.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,990 shares of the company's stock worth $1,407,000 after buying an additional 12,499 shares in the last quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd increased its position in Citigroup by 38.8% in the 4th quarter. UniSuper Management Pty Ltd now owns 1,306,851 shares of the company's stock valued at $152,496,000 after acquiring an additional 365,041 shares during the period. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB increased its position in Citigroup by 11.8% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 7,986,407 shares of the company's stock valued at $933,891,000 after acquiring an additional 844,056 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.72% of the company's stock.

Insider Transactions at Citigroup

In other news, Director John Cunningham Dugan sold 2,117 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.30, for a total transaction of $265,260.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 12,194 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,527,908.20. This trade represents a 14.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Edward Skyler sold 25,000 shares of Citigroup stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.41, for a total transaction of $3,285,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 182,022 shares in the company, valued at $23,919,511.02. This represents a 12.08% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. 0.11% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Citigroup Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE C opened at $139.93 on Monday. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $132.49 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $121.94. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. The firm has a market cap of $238.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.34, a PEG ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.11. Citigroup Inc. has a 1 year low of $85.48 and a 1 year high of $147.96.

Citigroup (NYSE:C - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.43. The company had revenue of $24.63 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.96 billion. Citigroup had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 9.35%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.96 EPS. Research analysts forecast that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.83 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Thursday, May 7th that permits the company to repurchase $30.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 13.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are generally a sign that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research analysts have issued reports on C shares. Evercore set a $139.00 price target on Citigroup in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Citigroup from $154.00 to $164.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a report on Monday, June 29th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price objective on shares of Citigroup from $140.00 to $153.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, May 8th. Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and issued a $139.00 price objective on shares of Citigroup in a report on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a "buy (b)" rating on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Monday, April 20th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have given a Buy rating and five have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $139.62.

Key Citigroup News

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup remains in focus heading into the next bank earnings cycle, with analysts noting that expectations for the financial sector have been steadily improving and that large banks like Citi will help kick off reporting later this month. This keeps attention on whether Citi can extend its recent earnings momentum. Article Title
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup recently announced a leadership addition in wealth management, appointing Michael Yannell to lead hedge funds within its alternatives platform. The move suggests Citi is expanding higher-fee wealth offerings to meet client demand, which may support revenue growth. Article Title
• Neutral Sentiment: Citi also made news for trimming its bitcoin and ether price targets, reflecting a more cautious stance on crypto demand and delayed US regulation. This is more of a sentiment call on digital assets than a direct catalyst for Citigroup shares. Article Title
• Negative Sentiment: Citi warned that oil could slump to $60 a barrel as Middle East supply fears fade, which reinforces a more bearish macro view from the bank’s research team. While not directly tied to Citi’s core earnings, the call can weigh on market sentiment around its commodity and trading outlook. Article Title

Citigroup Profile

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.

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