StockNews.com Downgrades Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) to Sell

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) was downgraded by equities research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a report released on Saturday.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the stock. Morgan Stanley lifted their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $31.00 to $39.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 7th. Citigroup boosted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Wedbush decreased their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $38.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, April 18th. Royal Bank of Canada boosted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 18th. Finally, Argus boosted their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $37.13.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Up 0.4 %

NYSE:CFG opened at $35.14 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.87. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $33.68 and a 200-day moving average of $30.95. The company has a market cap of $16.11 billion, a PE ratio of 12.73 and a beta of 1.38. Citizens Financial Group has a one year low of $22.77 and a one year high of $36.38.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last posted its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.75 by ($0.10). The firm had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.62% and a net margin of 11.52%. The business’s revenue was down 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.00 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group will post 3.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Citizens Financial Group news, insider Craig Jack Read sold 4,508 shares of Citizens Financial Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.54, for a total transaction of $151,198.32. Following the sale, the insider now owns 43,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,471,902.90. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available at the SEC website. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Trading of Citizens Financial Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Lindbrook Capital LLC grew its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 100.8% during the third quarter. Lindbrook Capital LLC now owns 988 shares of the bank’s stock worth $26,000 after buying an additional 496 shares in the last quarter. Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Quarry LP boosted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 183.1% in the fourth quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,104 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $37,000 after purchasing an additional 714 shares in the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC acquired a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $40,000. Finally, Blue Trust Inc. boosted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 77.6% in the fourth quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,314 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $44,000 after purchasing an additional 574 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Company Profile

Citizens Financial Group, Inc operates as the bank holding company that provides retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, corporations, and institutions in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Consumer Banking and Commercial Banking.