Weiss Ratings Reiterates Hold (C+) Rating for Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG)

Key Points

• Weiss Ratings has reaffirmed a "hold (C+)" rating for Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) amidst other analysts providing varying ratings, with Morgan Stanley giving it an "overweight" rating and a price target increase.
• The stock of Citizens Financial Group traded down to $52.00 on Wednesday, with a significant trading volume of 6,303,773 shares against an average of 4,681,483 shares.
• Certain institutional investors have recently adjusted their holdings, with 94.90% of the stock owned by institutional stakeholders, indicating strong confidence in the company.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG - Get Free Report)'s stock had its "hold (c+)" rating reissued by Weiss Ratings in a note issued to investors on Wednesday,Weiss Ratings reports.

CFG has been the subject of a number of other research reports. Raymond James Financial set a $62.00 price target on Citizens Financial Group and gave the company a "strong-buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Citizens Financial Group from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and boosted their target price for the company from $48.50 to $52.00 in a research note on Friday, August 1st. Morgan Stanley raised Citizens Financial Group from an "equal weight" rating to an "overweight" rating and upped their price target for the stock from $53.00 to $71.00 in a research note on Monday, September 29th. Cantor Fitzgerald assumed coverage on Citizens Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, September 10th. They set an "overweight" rating and a $61.00 price target on the stock. Finally, Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised Citizens Financial Group from a "market perform" rating to an "outperform" rating and set a $57.00 target price on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 9th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Buy rating and three have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has a consensus rating of "Moderate Buy" and an average price target of $55.40.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of Citizens Financial Group stock traded down $1.13 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $52.00. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,303,773 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,681,483. The firm has a market cap of $22.43 billion, a PE ratio of 15.81, a P/E/G ratio of 0.58 and a beta of 0.79. The business's 50-day moving average price is $50.93 and its 200-day moving average price is $44.70. Citizens Financial Group has a 52 week low of $32.60 and a 52 week high of $55.24. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.54.

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 the consensus estimate of $0.88 by $0.04. The company had revenue of $2.04 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.01 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.94% and a net margin of 13.26%.The firm's revenue was up 3.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.82 earnings per share. Equities analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase plan on Friday, June 13th that permits the company to buyback $1.50 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the bank to purchase up to 8.5% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are often a sign that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Citizens Financial Group

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the business. Heartland Bank & Trust Co acquired a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the first quarter worth about $398,000. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd increased its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 19.2% in the 1st quarter. Sumitomo Mitsui DS Asset Management Company Ltd now owns 54,870 shares of the bank's stock valued at $2,248,000 after acquiring an additional 8,851 shares in the last quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. increased its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 425.7% in the 1st quarter. Robeco Institutional Asset Management B.V. now owns 26,104 shares of the bank's stock valued at $1,069,000 after acquiring an additional 21,138 shares in the last quarter. World Investment Advisors bought a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 1st quarter valued at $410,000. Finally, OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 37.9% during the 1st quarter. OneDigital Investment Advisors LLC now owns 7,126 shares of the bank's stock valued at $292,000 after purchasing an additional 1,957 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Company 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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