Wealthfront Advisers LLC Makes New $13.30 Million Investment in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Key Points

• Wealthfront Advisers initiated a $13.3 million position in Citizens Financial Group during the second quarter, buying 189,873 shares. Institutional investors collectively own 94.9% of CFG.
• Citizens Financial Group exceeded quarterly expectations, reporting $1.30 in EPS and $2.28 billion in revenue, with revenue up 12.1% year over year. The company also maintains a $0.46 quarterly dividend, yielding approximately 2.5% annually.
• Analysts remain broadly positive, with 16 Buy ratings and four Holds producing a “Moderate Buy” consensus and an average price target of $79.05; CFG recently traded at $73.45.

Wealthfront Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) during the second quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 189,873 shares of the bank's stock, valued at approximately $13,304,000.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of CFG. BlackRock Inc. bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $3,415,046,000. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,361,142 shares of the bank's stock valued at $661,052,000 after buying an additional 32,264 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2.7% in the 4th quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,217,975 shares of the bank's stock valued at $655,242,000 after buying an additional 298,779 shares during the period. Capital International Investors increased its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 32.3% in the 4th quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,000,750 shares of the bank's stock valued at $467,389,000 after buying an additional 1,953,372 shares during the period. Finally, AQR Capital Management LLC raised its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 56.9% during the fourth quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 7,722,559 shares of the bank's stock worth $451,075,000 after acquiring an additional 2,799,050 shares during the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Down 1.2%

Shares of Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $73.45 on Wednesday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $70.92 and a 200 day simple moving average of $65.43. The stock has a market cap of $30.94 billion, a PE ratio of 15.93, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 12 month low of $47.96 and a 12 month high of $75.33.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The bank reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.25 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 8.85% and a net margin of 17.18%.The company's quarterly revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.92 earnings per share. Research analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.3 EPS for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Investors of record on Thursday, July 30th were given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.5%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 30th. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 39.91%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

CFG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Robert W. Baird boosted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $72.00 to $75.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a report on Friday, July 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald raised their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, July 15th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Thursday, July 16th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $79.05.

Insider Buying and Selling at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, CEO Saun Bruce Van sold 129,369 shares of Citizens Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total transaction of $9,323,623.83. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,140,763 shares of the company's stock, valued at $82,214,789.41. This trade represents a 10.19% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.67% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

About Citizens Financial Group

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.

Continue following MarketBeat

Add MarketBeat as your preferred source on Google to see our latest stories in your feed.

Add As Preferred Source