Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) from a sell rating to a hold rating in a research report released on Friday.

Several other brokerages have also recently commented on CFG. Royal Bank of Canada upped their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $33.00 to $35.00 and gave the company an outperform rating in a research report on Thursday, January 18th. Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a buy rating in a report on Friday. Evercore ISI boosted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $35.00 to $39.00 and gave the company an in-line rating in a report on Thursday, March 28th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods boosted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $35.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a market perform rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, TheStreet raised shares of Citizens Financial Group from a c+ rating to a b- rating in a report on Tuesday, December 26th. Twelve analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Citizens Financial Group presently has an average rating of Hold and an average price target of $36.29.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $33.99 on Friday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $33.33 and a two-hundred day moving average of $30.63. The stock has a market capitalization of $15.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.32 and a beta of 1.38. Citizens Financial Group has a 52 week low of $22.77 and a 52 week high of $36.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.87.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.65 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.75 by ($0.10). The business had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 6.62%. The business’s revenue was down 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.00 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group will post 3.25 EPS for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Investors of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.94%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group’s payout ratio is presently 60.87%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Craig Jack Read sold 4,508 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.54, for a total value of $151,198.32. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 43,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,471,902.90. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Citizens Financial Group

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in CFG. Lindbrook Capital LLC lifted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 100.8% during the 3rd 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. Groupama Asset Managment bought a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth about $27,000. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Clear Street Markets LLC lifted its position in Citizens Financial Group by 93.6% during the 1st quarter. Clear Street Markets LLC now owns 964 shares of the bank’s stock worth $29,000 after buying an additional 466 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Citizens Financial Group

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.