Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat.com reports. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating and nineteen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 1 year price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $70.8810.

A number of research analysts have recently commented on CFG shares. Truist Financial boosted their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $63.00 to $69.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Evercore reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $75.00 target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Tuesday, April 21st. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $80.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, March 31st. Royal Bank Of Canada upped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Citigroup reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Friday, May 8th.

Insider Buying and Selling at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, insider Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.16, for a total value of $376,068.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 22,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,402,640.40. This represents a 21.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Also, insider Susan Lamonica sold 13,258 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction 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 completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 165,971 shares in the company, valued at $9,632,956.84. This represents a 7.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Corporate insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Citizens Financial Group

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Capital World Investors increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 1.7% during the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 37,289,711 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,982,532,000 after purchasing an additional 614,181 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 1.7% during the third quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 24,064,513 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,279,270,000 after purchasing an additional 393,158 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 0.3% during the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 11,361,142 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $661,052,000 after purchasing an additional 32,264 shares during the last quarter. Morgan Stanley increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 2.7% during the fourth quarter. Morgan Stanley now owns 11,217,975 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $655,242,000 after purchasing an additional 298,779 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 32.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,000,750 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $467,389,000 after purchasing an additional 1,953,372 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 94.90% of the company’s stock.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Up 2.7%

Shares of CFG stock opened at $62.44 on Wednesday. The stock has a market cap of $26.40 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.76, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.48 and a beta of 0.68. The company has a quick ratio of 0.84, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51. Citizens Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $39.69 and a fifty-two week high of $68.79. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $62.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $60.56.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.03. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 8.31%. The business had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $0.77 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group will post 5.2 EPS for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th were issued a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.9%. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is currently 43.50%.

Citizens Financial Group Company Profile

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.