StockNews.com Upgrades Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) to “Hold”

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research note issued to investors on Sunday.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on CFG. Piper Sandler raised Citizens Financial Group from a neutral rating to an overweight rating and upped their price target for the stock from $35.00 to $41.00 in a report on Friday, April 26th. UBS Group increased their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $37.00 to $38.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. 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 report on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada lifted their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Ten equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Citizens Financial Group currently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $37.73.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Citizens Financial Group stock traded up $0.37 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $35.76. The company had a trading volume of 2,410,240 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,673,800. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.87 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The company has a market capitalization of $16.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.82 and a beta of 1.36. The company’s fifty day moving average is $34.04 and its 200-day moving average is $31.31. Citizens Financial Group has a 12-month low of $22.77 and a 12-month high of $36.38.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.75 by ($0.10). Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 6.62%. The firm had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $1.00 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group will post 3.23 EPS for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be given a $0.42 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 30th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.70%. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.87%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Craig Jack Read sold 6,327 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 19th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.70, for a total value of $213,219.90. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now directly owns 37,558 shares in the company, valued at $1,265,704.60. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its position in Citizens Financial Group by 100.8% in the third quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 988 shares of the bank’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 496 shares during the period. Larson Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Quarry LP grew its position in Citizens Financial Group by 183.1% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,104 shares of the bank’s stock worth $37,000 after acquiring an additional 714 shares during the period. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth approximately $40,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. grew its position in Citizens Financial Group by 77.6% in 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 during the period. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.