Vanguard Group Inc. Sells 312,907 Shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG)

Key Points

• Vanguard Group Inc. sold 312,907 shares of Citizens Financial Group, lowering its stake to 11.74%, valued at approximately $2.1 billion.
• Citizens Financial Group recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.42 per share and has a share repurchase plan authorized for up to $1.5 billion.
• Analysts have mixed views on the stock, with price targets ranging from $44.00 to $57.00, contributing to a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy."

Vanguard Group Inc. cut its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 0.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 51,339,510 shares of the bank's stock after selling 312,907 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. owned 11.74% of Citizens Financial Group worth $2,103,380,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 3.3% during 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 during the last quarter. Fuller & Thaler Asset Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 20.9% during the 4th 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. Royal Bank of Canada raised its holdings 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 valued at $273,378,000 after acquiring an additional 374,850 shares in the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 32.2% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 6,186,364 shares of the bank's stock valued at $270,715,000 after purchasing an additional 1,507,536 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Dimensional Fund Advisors LP increased its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2.1% in the 4th quarter. Dimensional Fund Advisors LP now owns 4,689,082 shares of the bank's stock valued at $205,194,000 after purchasing an additional 96,067 shares during the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on the company. UBS Group boosted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $50.00 to $53.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Friday, May 30th. The Goldman Sachs Group dropped their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $55.00 to $48.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $50.00 to $44.00 and set an "outperform" rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 17th. Cowen began coverage on Citizens Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, May 14th. They issued a "buy" rating for the company. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company set a $57.00 target price on Citizens Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, July 2nd. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, fourteen have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Citizens Financial Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus price target of $51.53.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $47.29 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.84. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $32.60 and a 1-year high of $49.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $20.40 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.78. The company's 50-day moving average is $45.31 and its 200 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 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.04. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 13.26% and a return on equity of 6.94%. The firm had revenue of $2.04 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.01 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $0.82 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up 3.8% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 EPS for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 31st will be issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 31st. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 51.06%.

Citizens Financial Group declared that its board has authorized a share repurchase plan on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to repurchase $1.50 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the bank to buy up to 8.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company's board believes its shares are undervalued.

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.

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