Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) Shares Acquired by Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd.

Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its stake in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG - Free Report) by 9.6% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 489,222 shares of the bank's stock after purchasing an additional 42,958 shares during the quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. owned about 0.10% of Citizens Financial Group worth $15,724,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. Authentikos Wealth Advisory LLC bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 3rd quarter worth about $40,000. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at about $40,000. Blue Trust Inc. boosted its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 77.6% during the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,314 shares of the bank's stock worth $44,000 after acquiring an additional 574 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV grew its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 40.4% in the fourth quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,640 shares of the bank's stock worth $54,000 after purchasing an additional 472 shares during the period. 94.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Craig Jack Read sold 4,508 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.54, for a total value of $151,198.32. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 43,885 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $1,471,902.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.62% of the company's stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CFG has been the subject of several recent research reports. Citigroup lifted their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Argus increased their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $31.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $36.50 to $36.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $37.73.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of NYSE CFG traded up $0.64 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $37.16. 5,027,719 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,870,167. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a current ratio of 0.87. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $22.77 and a one year high of $37.28. The firm has a market capitalization of $16.91 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.46 and a beta of 1.12. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $34.83 and a two-hundred day moving average of $32.08.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.75 by ($0.10). Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.62% and a net margin of 11.52%. The firm had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $1.96 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $1.00 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st were paid a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.52%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group's dividend payout ratio is presently 60.87%.

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.