JPMorgan Chase & Co. Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) Stock

Key Points

• JPMorgan raised its price target on Citizens Financial Group to $68.50 (from $68.00) and maintained an overweight rating, implying roughly a 5.19% upside from the prior close.
• Analyst sentiment is broadly positive with a consensus rating of Moderate Buy (19 Buys, 1 Hold) and a consensus target of $70.88, while other firms have set targets as high as $77.
• Citizens recently beat quarterly expectations with EPS of $1.13 vs. $1.10 and revenue up 12% year-over-year to $2.17 billion; the stock traded around $65.12 with a market cap of about $27.7 billion and a P/E of 15.4.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) had its price target raised by stock analysts at JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $68.00 to $68.50 in a report issued on Thursday,Benzinga reports. The firm currently has an "overweight" rating on the bank's stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s target price points to a potential upside of 5.19% from the stock's previous close.

Several other analysts also recently weighed in on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $80.00 to $73.00 and set an "overweight" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a "buy" rating and set a $73.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Barclays set a $77.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Monday, January 5th. New Street Research set a $73.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. Finally, Evercore reaffirmed an "outperform" rating and set a $75.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, April 21st. Nineteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Citizens Financial Group presently has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and a consensus target price of $70.88.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Up 1.1%

NYSE CFG traded up $0.72 during trading on Thursday, hitting $65.12. The stock had a trading volume of 3,980,723 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,249,493. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock has a market capitalization of $27.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.40, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.70. Citizens Financial Group has a one year low of $36.72 and a one year high of $68.79. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $61.25 and a 200 day simple moving average of $58.78.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 8.31%. The firm's quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.77 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, insider Susan Lamonica sold 13,258 shares of Citizens Financial Group stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.04, for a total transaction of $769,494.32. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 165,971 shares of the company's stock, valued at $9,632,956.84. This trade represents a 7.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.67% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Citizens Financial Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Activest Wealth Management increased its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 5,600.0% during the fourth quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 513 shares of the bank's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 504 shares during the period. True Wealth Design LLC increased its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 891.5% during the third quarter. True Wealth Design LLC now owns 585 shares of the bank's stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 526 shares during the period. Finally, DV Equities LLC purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 94.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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