Impax Asset Management Group plc Lowers Stake in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG)

Impax Asset Management Group plc reduced its stake in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 28.8% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 475,429 shares of the bank's stock after selling 192,241 shares during the period. Impax Asset Management Group plc owned 0.11% of Citizens Financial Group worth $19,478,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Ameriflex Group Inc. bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth about $26,000. Grove Bank & Trust grew its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 97.1% in the 1st quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 678 shares of the bank's stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 334 shares during the period. Colonial Trust Co SC grew its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 673.0% in the 4th quarter. Colonial Trust Co SC now owns 889 shares of the bank's stock worth $39,000 after buying an additional 774 shares during the period. NBT Bank N A NY bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 1st quarter worth about $45,000. Finally, Citizens National Bank Trust Department boosted its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 333.3% during the first quarter. Citizens National Bank Trust Department now owns 1,300 shares of the bank's stock worth $53,000 after acquiring an additional 1,000 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have recently issued reports on CFG. Barclays lowered their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $52.00 to $49.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 17th. DA Davidson lowered their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $53.00 to $49.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Argus set a $45.00 target price on Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, May 21st. They issued a "buy" rating and a $50.00 target price on the stock. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $49.00 to $43.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 3rd. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eleven have issued a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Citizens Financial Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $48.68.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Up 1.5%

Shares of Citizens Financial Group stock traded up $0.69 on Friday, reaching $47.72. The company had a trading volume of 3,302,892 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,836,498. The firm has a market cap of $20.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.15, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.76. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.83. The firm's 50-day moving average price is $41.14 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $42.14. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $32.60 and a 1 year high of $49.25.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 16th. The bank reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.75 by $0.02. The business 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%. As a group, research analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group declared that its board has approved a share repurchase plan on Friday, June 13th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the bank to reacquire up to 8.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company's board believes its stock is undervalued.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

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

Citizens Financial Group 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.