Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Has $1.04 Million Stock Holdings in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System lowered its stake in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 8.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 23,859 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 2,206 shares during the period. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $1,044,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of CFG. Ameliora Wealth Management Ltd. acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Migdal Insurance & Financial Holdings Ltd. acquired a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Sierra Ocean LLC bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth $47,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the third quarter worth $48,000. Finally, Duncker Streett & Co. Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at about $51,000. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

CFG has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Raymond James reaffirmed a “strong-buy” rating and set a $58.00 price target (up from $55.00) on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 21st. Stephens reiterated an “overweight” rating and issued a $53.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays increased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $47.00 to $52.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 6th. The Goldman Sachs Group lifted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $48.00 to $59.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 26th. Finally, Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $60.00 to $54.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, March 13th. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, nine have given a buy rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $49.06.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

Shares of Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $41.19 on Monday. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $45.12 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $44.12. The firm has a market capitalization of $18.00 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.59, a P/E/G ratio of 0.81 and a beta of 1.06. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $32.06 and a fifty-two week high of $49.25. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.85.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, January 17th. The bank reported $0.85 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.83 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $1.99 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.96 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 6.75% and a net margin of 12.21%. Citizens Financial Group’s revenue for the quarter was down .1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.85 EPS. On average, equities analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Stockholders of record on Friday, January 31st were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.08%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 31st. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 55.45%.

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.