Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) Given Average Recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by Brokerages

Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) has been given an average recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty research firms that are covering the firm, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and nineteen have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 12 month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $70.8810.

CFG has been the topic of several analyst reports. DA Davidson increased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, April 20th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $80.00 to $73.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, March 31st. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods raised their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $70.00 to $72.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $68.00 to $68.50 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th.

Insider Transactions at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, insider Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider directly owned 22,565 shares in the company, valued at approximately $1,402,640.40. This trade represents a 21.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter valued at $26,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 1st quarter worth about $27,000. Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Activest Wealth Management increased its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 5,600.0% during the 4th quarter. Activest Wealth Management now owns 513 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 504 shares during the period. Finally, DV Equities LLC bought a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth about $35,000. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Performance

CFG opened at $65.61 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $27.75 billion, a PE ratio of 15.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.51 and a beta of 0.68. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $63.12 and a 200-day moving average of $61.08. Citizens Financial Group has a 52-week low of $40.17 and a 52-week high of $68.79. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a current ratio of 0.85.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.13 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.10 by $0.03. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 8.31% and a net margin of 16.21%.The business had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.16 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.77 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group will post 5.2 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Investors of record on Thursday, April 30th were paid a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, April 30th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.8%. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.50%.

Citizens Financial Group Company 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.