Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG Shares Purchased by Fifth Third Bancorp

Fifth Third Bancorp boosted its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 225.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 97,613 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 67,578 shares during the period. Fifth Third Bancorp’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $5,854,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. purchased a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management purchased a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth $29,000. Activest Wealth Management raised its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 5,600.0% in the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 513 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 504 shares during the period. Finally, DV Equities LLC acquired a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at $35,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 94.90% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group boosted their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, July 7th. DA Davidson raised their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $72.00 price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Monday, July 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $68.50 to $76.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 6th. Finally, Cantor Fitzgerald boosted their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $75.10.

Citizens Financial Group News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Citizens Financial Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citizens Financial beat Q2 earnings estimates with EPS of $1.30 versus $1.25 expected, while revenue rose 12.1% year over year and net income climbed 35%, signaling solid operating momentum. Article title
• Positive Sentiment: Management’s raised net interest margin outlook added to optimism, suggesting profitability could improve further in coming quarters. Article title
• Positive Sentiment: Higher net interest income and fee income were key drivers of the profit jump, indicating stronger core banking revenue and healthier business trends. Article title
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup? No—Cantor Fitzgerald raised its price target on CFG to $80 and reiterated an overweight rating, reinforcing a bullish analyst view after the results. Article title
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusual call option activity ahead of the earnings release suggests traders were positioning for upside, but it does not by itself change the company’s fundamentals.

Citizens Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CFG opened at $74.28 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.84. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 1-year low of $45.90 and a 1-year high of $74.70. The company has a market capitalization of $31.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.56, a PEG ratio of 0.59 and a beta of 0.67. The business has a 50-day moving average of $66.25 and a 200-day moving average of $63.53.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The bank reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.05. The business 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 8.31% and a net margin of 16.21%.The company’s revenue was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.92 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.22 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, July 30th will be given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, July 30th. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.5%. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 43.50%.

Insider Transactions at Citizens Financial Group

In other Citizens Financial Group news, insider Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred 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 completion of the sale, the insider owned 22,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,402,640.40. This trade represents a 21.14% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. 0.67% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

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.