First Trust Advisors LP Purchases 469,629 Shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG)

First Trust Advisors LP boosted its position in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 16.6% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,299,529 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 469,629 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP owned about 0.75% of Citizens Financial Group worth $144,387,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the third quarter worth about $453,000. Wilmington Savings Fund Society FSB bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $89,000. Tidal Investments LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 292.2% during the 3rd quarter. Tidal Investments LLC now owns 69,851 shares of the bank's stock worth $2,869,000 after acquiring an additional 52,039 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 4.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 655,600 shares of the bank's stock valued at $28,368,000 after buying an additional 29,940 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oddo BHF Asset Management Sas purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 3rd quarter valued at about $590,000. 94.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Down 0.2 %

NYSE CFG traded down $0.09 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $37.35. 1,049,971 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 4,778,822. The stock has a market cap of $16.33 billion, a PE ratio of 12.32, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 0.81. The company has a quick ratio of 0.85, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $40.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $43.46. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.60 and a 52 week high of $49.25.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 16th. The bank reported $0.77 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $0.75 by $0.02. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 12.21% and a return on equity of 6.75%. The company had revenue of $1.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.94 billion. Analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, April 30th will be given a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.50%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 53.33%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on CFG shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective 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. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on shares of 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. DA Davidson dropped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $53.00 to $49.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 17th. Argus set a $45.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Thursday. Finally, Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $58.00 to $51.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, March 24th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have given a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average target price of $46.18.

About Citizens Financial Group

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.