KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS Buys New Stake in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C)

KLP Kapitalforvaltning AS bought a new stake in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm bought 879,941 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $61,939,000.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Sei Investments Co. boosted its holdings in Citigroup by 9.1% in the 4th quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 1,552,910 shares of the company’s stock valued at $109,312,000 after purchasing an additional 129,083 shares during the period. American Century Companies Inc. boosted its holdings in Citigroup by 3.4% in the 4th quarter. American Century Companies Inc. now owns 352,948 shares of the company’s stock valued at $24,844,000 after purchasing an additional 11,674 shares during the period. Vestor Capital LLC bought a new stake in Citigroup in the 4th quarter valued at $24,596,000. Runnymede Capital Advisors Inc. bought a new position in shares of Citigroup during the 4th quarter worth about $39,000. Finally, Mizuho Securities USA LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Citigroup by 44.9% during the 4th quarter. Mizuho Securities USA LLC now owns 179,249 shares of the company’s stock worth $12,617,000 after acquiring an additional 55,539 shares during the period. 71.72% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on C shares. StockNews.com raised shares of Citigroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday. Bank of America increased their target price on shares of Citigroup from $90.00 to $95.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler reiterated an “overweight” rating and set a $83.00 target price (up previously from $80.00) on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Truist Financial started coverage on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set a “buy” rating and a $85.00 target price for the company. Finally, Oppenheimer dropped their target price on shares of Citigroup from $110.00 to $102.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 3rd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and thirteen have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $83.53.

Insider Transactions at Citigroup

In related news, insider Sara Wechter sold 15,125 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $81.01, for a total transaction of $1,225,276.25. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 109,780 shares in the company, valued at approximately $8,893,277.80. The trade was a 12.11 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, CFO Mark Mason sold 58,465 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Friday, February 14th. The stock was sold at an average price of $83.21, for a total transaction of $4,864,872.65. Following the transaction, the chief financial officer now owns 217,331 shares in the company, valued at approximately $18,084,112.51. The trade was a 21.20 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 103,590 shares of company stock valued at $8,523,149 over the last 90 days. 0.08% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Citigroup Stock Performance

Shares of C opened at $71.93 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.50, a quick ratio of 0.96 and a current ratio of 0.96. Citigroup Inc. has a twelve month low of $53.51 and a twelve month high of $84.74. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $77.46 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $70.20. The firm has a market cap of $135.56 billion, a P/E ratio of 12.09, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 1.43.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 15th. The company reported $1.34 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.22 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $19.58 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $19.51 billion. Citigroup had a net margin of 7.43% and a return on equity of 6.62%. The business’s revenue was up 12.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.84 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that Citigroup Inc. will post 7.53 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 28th. Stockholders of record on Monday, February 3rd were given a $0.56 dividend. This represents a $2.24 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.11%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, February 3rd. Citigroup’s dividend payout ratio is presently 37.65%.

Citigroup declared that its board has approved a stock buyback plan on Wednesday, January 15th that authorizes the company to repurchase $20.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to purchase up to 13.5% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Citigroup Profile

Citigroup Inc, a diversified financial service holding company, provides various financial product and services to consumers, corporations, governments, and institutions worldwide. It operates through five segments: Services, Markets, Banking, U.S. Personal Banking, and Wealth. The Services segment includes Treasury and Trade Solutions, which provides cash management, trade, and working capital solutions to multinational corporations, financial institutions, and public sector organizations; and Securities Services, such as cross-border support for clients, local market expertise, post-trade technologies, data solutions, and various securities services solutions.