Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) Receives Average Rating of “Hold” from Analysts

Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) has earned an average rating of “Hold” from the sixteen research firms that are covering the company, MarketBeat reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month price target among brokerages that have covered the stock in the last year is $37.67.

Several research firms have recently commented on CFG. Argus raised their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $36.00 to $39.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $35.00 to $36.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, April 8th. Citigroup raised their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 19th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $36.50 to $36.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, May 1st. Finally, Wedbush lowered 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 research note on Thursday, April 18th.

Citizens Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of CFG opened at $36.38 on Wednesday. Citizens Financial Group has a 1-year low of $22.77 and a 1-year high of $37.30. The stock has a market cap of $16.55 billion, a PE ratio of 13.18, a P/E/G ratio of 1.40 and a beta of 1.10. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $35.18 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $33.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a current ratio of 0.87 and a quick ratio of 0.87.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last announced its quarterly 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). Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 6.62%. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.00 earnings per share. Citizens Financial Group’s revenue was down 7.9% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group will post 3.16 EPS for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date was Tuesday, April 30th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.62%. Citizens Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 60.87%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other Citizens Financial Group news, insider Craig Jack Read sold 6,327 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, April 19th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.70, for a total transaction of $213,219.90. Following the sale, the insider now owns 37,558 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,265,704.60. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.62% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Citizens Financial Group

A number of institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CFG. Larson Financial Group LLC purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Quarry LP raised its position in Citizens Financial Group by 183.1% during the 4th quarter. Quarry LP now owns 1,104 shares of the bank’s stock worth $37,000 after buying an additional 714 shares during the last quarter. CVA Family Office LLC purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth $40,000. Blue Trust Inc. raised its position in Citizens Financial Group by 77.6% during the 4th quarter. Blue Trust Inc. now owns 1,314 shares of the bank’s stock worth $44,000 after buying an additional 574 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV raised its position in Citizens Financial Group by 40.4% during the 4th quarter. Massmutual Trust Co. FSB ADV now owns 1,640 shares of the bank’s stock worth $54,000 after buying an additional 472 shares during the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.