Csenge Advisory Group Invests $869,000 in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Csenge Advisory Group purchased a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 12,396 shares of the bank’s stock, valued at approximately $869,000.

Other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Johnson Financial Group Inc. bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the 2nd quarter worth about $125,000. Tocqueville Asset Management L.P. purchased a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $368,000. Bruni J V & Co. Co. bought a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $67,108,281,000. Great Lakes Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 2nd quarter valued at about $489,000. Finally, Compass Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the second quarter worth about $750,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.90% of the company’s stock.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Down 3.7%

Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $70.75 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $29.80 billion, a PE ratio of 15.35, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a one year low of $47.96 and a one year high of $75.33. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $71.04 and a 200 day moving average of $65.48.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The bank reported $1.30 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.25 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.25 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 8.85% and a net margin of 17.18%.Citizens Financial Group’s revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.3 EPS for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 30th were paid a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 30th. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 39.91%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, CEO Saun Bruce Van sold 129,369 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 24th. The shares were sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total value of $9,323,623.83. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 1,140,763 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $82,214,789.41. This trade represents a 10.19% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. 0.67% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on CFG. UBS Group upped their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, July 7th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $90.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Weiss Ratings restated a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Monday, August 3rd. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $73.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $80.00 target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Sixteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $79.25.

Citizens Financial Group 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.