Citigroup (NYSE:C) Lowered to Hold Rating by Zacks Research

Zacks Research lowered shares of Citigroup (NYSE:C) from a strong-buy rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Monday morning,Zacks reports.

A number of other equities analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Citigroup from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, June 18th. Oppenheimer downgraded Citigroup from an “outperform” rating to a “market perform” rating in a report on Tuesday, June 30th. Evercore set a $143.00 price target on Citigroup in a research note on Monday, July 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on Citigroup from $135.50 to $149.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Weiss Ratings upgraded Citigroup from a “buy (b)” rating to a “buy (b+)” rating in a report on Monday, August 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Citigroup currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $145.22.

Citigroup Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of NYSE:C opened at $136.23 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $232.35 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 14.71, a PEG ratio of 0.61 and a beta of 1.12. Citigroup has a 1-year low of $93.66 and a 1-year high of $147.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.71, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $134.75 and a 200 day moving average price of $128.72.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, July 14th. The company reported $3.15 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.74 by $0.41. Citigroup had a return on equity of 10.15% and a net margin of 10.23%.The company had revenue of $24.77 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.74 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.96 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was up 14.5% on a year-over-year basis. On average, research analysts anticipate that Citigroup will post 11.2 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, August 28th. Shareholders of record on Monday, August 3rd were paid a dividend of $0.67 per share. This is a boost from Citigroup’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.60. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, August 3rd. This represents a $2.68 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.0%. Citigroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 28.94%.

Institutional Trading of Citigroup

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Whipplewood Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in Citigroup in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Paladin Partners LLC purchased a new position in shares of Citigroup during the 2nd quarter valued at $27,000. TD Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Citigroup in the fourth quarter worth $28,000. IMG Wealth Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of Citigroup by 197.6% in the first quarter. IMG Wealth Management Inc. now owns 244 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after acquiring an additional 162 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Scarborough Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Citigroup during the first quarter worth $29,000. 71.72% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key Headlines Impacting Citigroup

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup expects 2026 return on tangible common equity (RoTCE) to come in slightly above 11%, supported by stronger client activity, cost savings and better capital efficiency. The outlook represents progress in Citi’s multiyear restructuring and transformation efforts. Citigroup lifts 2026 ROTCE outlook
• Positive Sentiment: CFO Gonzalo Luchetti indicated that Citi intends to accelerate share repurchases beyond the $13 billion bought back in 2025. Higher buybacks could improve per-share earnings and signal confidence that the bank’s capital position is strong enough to support shareholder returns. Citi also plans approximately $500 million of additional investment by year-end. Citi’s 11%+ RoTCE target
• Positive Sentiment: The launch of “eFPI @ Citi” in India is designed to speed foreign portfolio investor registrations, potentially making Citi’s platform more attractive to institutional clients and supporting growth in its securities and transaction-services businesses. Citigroup launches eFPI @ Citi
• Neutral Sentiment: Citi is expanding its international footprint by opening a representative office in Guyana and hiring veteran banker Sophia Wang to lead China institutional sales. These moves reinforce the bank’s global strategy, although near-term financial effects are unclear. Citigroup opens representative office in Guyana
• Negative Sentiment: Citi analysts warned that markets may be underestimating the risk of a slower artificial-intelligence investment cycle. A broader decline in earnings expectations or risk appetite could weigh on financial stocks, even though the warning is not specific to Citi’s operations. Citigroup warns on AI-driven market gains

About Citigroup

Citigroup Inc (NYSE:C) is a global financial services company headquartered in New York City. Through its businesses, Citi provides banking, lending, credit card, wealth management, investment banking, securities, markets and treasury services to individuals, businesses, financial institutions and governments.

The company’s operations include U.S. Personal Banking, which offers consumer banking, credit cards and lending products; Wealth Management, which serves affluent and high-net-worth clients; and its Institutional Clients Group, which provides investment banking, corporate banking, markets, securities services and transaction banking.