Citigroup Inc. $C Shares Acquired by Aviva PLC

Aviva PLC increased its stake in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) by 5.3% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 1,590,361 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 79,753 shares during the quarter. Aviva PLC’s holdings in Citigroup were worth $185,579,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of Citigroup by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 163,239,926 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,048,467,000 after buying an additional 4,938,923 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors grew its stake in shares of Citigroup by 6.5% in the third quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 47,262,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,797,292,000 after buying an additional 2,871,074 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Citigroup by 0.4% in the fourth quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 43,252,372 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,036,712,000 after buying an additional 189,548 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of Citigroup by 4.0% in the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 34,196,783 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,990,422,000 after buying an additional 1,326,224 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Fisher Asset Management LLC grew its stake in shares of Citigroup by 2.6% in the fourth quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 33,887,285 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,954,307,000 after buying an additional 846,772 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 71.72% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Edward Skyler sold 25,000 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.41, for a total transaction of $3,285,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 182,022 shares in the company, valued at $23,919,511.02. The trade was a 12.08% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Also, Director John Cunningham Dugan sold 2,117 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.30, for a total value of $265,260.10. Following the transaction, the director owned 12,194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,527,908.20. This represents a 14.79% decrease in their position. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

C has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Zacks Research lowered Citigroup from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on Citigroup from $137.00 to $151.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Citigroup in a research note on Thursday, March 26th. They set a “buy” rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. Piper Sandler restated an “overweight” rating and set a $145.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Citigroup in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Citigroup from $160.00 to $162.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $137.62.

Citigroup Stock Performance

Citigroup stock opened at $137.89 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $235.18 billion, a PE ratio of 17.09, a P/E/G ratio of 0.60 and a beta of 1.12. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $126.85 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $117.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99. Citigroup Inc. has a 12 month low of $76.11 and a 12 month high of $138.23.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.43. Citigroup had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 9.35%.The business had revenue of $24.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.96 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.96 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Research analysts expect that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Citigroup declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 7th that authorizes the company to buyback $30.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 13.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback plans are often a sign that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

Citigroup Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th were given a dividend of $0.60 per share. The ex-dividend date was Monday, May 4th. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.7%. Citigroup’s payout ratio is currently 29.74%.

Key Citigroup News

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup is rolling out tokenized depositary receipts for private-company shares, a move that could broaden access to private markets and create a new growth avenue for the bank. Article title
• Positive Sentiment: Reuters reported that Citi hired Ryan Beaupré as a managing director in its consumer and retail investment banking group, signaling continued effort to expand the franchise and deepen client coverage. Article title
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup’s recent earnings beat and revenue growth continue to support the stock, with Q1 EPS and revenue both topping expectations and underscoring improving operating momentum. Article title
• Neutral Sentiment: President Trump publicly praised Citigroup and CEO Jane Fraser for M&A advisory work, which helped sentiment, but some reports noted the ranking was overstated, limiting the fundamental impact. Article title
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary also pointed to Citigroup’s turnaround progress, solid trading conditions, and a constructive investment banking outlook, which supports the stock but is largely a continuation of existing optimism. Article title

Citigroup Company Profile

Citigroup Inc is a global financial services company headquartered in New York City with roots tracing back to the City Bank of New York, founded in 1812. The modern Citigroup was created through the 1998 merger of Citicorp and Travelers Group and has since operated as a diversified bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial products and services to consumers, corporations, governments and institutions worldwide.

Citi’s principal businesses include retail and commercial banking, credit card and consumer lending products, wealth management and private banking, and a full suite of institutional services.