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

Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) has earned a consensus rating of “Hold” from the seventeen ratings firms that are presently covering the firm, Marketbeat reports. Nine investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average 12-month target price among brokerages that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $41.60.

CFG has been the topic of several recent research reports. Stephens boosted their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $40.00 to $42.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. StockNews.com upgraded Citizens Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 5th. DA Davidson raised their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $41.00 to $46.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, July 18th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $43.00 to $49.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $38.00 to $41.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th.

Insider Activity at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, insider Craig Jack Read sold 3,938 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The shares were sold at an average price of $43.26, for a total transaction of $170,357.88. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 33,620 shares in the company, valued at $1,454,401.20. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Citizens Financial Group

Several institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of CFG. Wolverine Asset Management LLC purchased a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the second quarter worth approximately $999,000. Rhumbline Advisers lifted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 12.2% during the 2nd quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 1,074,573 shares of the bank’s stock worth $38,717,000 after buying an additional 117,157 shares during the last quarter. Elevated Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the 2nd quarter valued at $683,000. Natixis Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 4.5% in the 2nd quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC now owns 799,848 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $28,819,000 after buying an additional 34,616 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. raised its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 120.0% during the 2nd quarter. Stieven Capital Advisors L.P. now owns 389,580 shares of the bank’s stock worth $14,037,000 after acquiring an additional 212,500 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Down 4.6 %

Shares of NYSE CFG opened at $40.71 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $18.52 billion, a PE ratio of 14.75, a P/E/G ratio of 1.55 and a beta of 1.10. The company has a current ratio of 0.87, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60. Citizens Financial Group has a 12-month low of $22.77 and a 12-month high of $43.96. The company has a 50-day moving average of $36.99 and a 200 day moving average of $34.85.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.79 by ($0.01). Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 6.21%. The company had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $1.95 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $0.92 earnings per share. Citizens Financial Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group will post 3.24 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.13%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 31st. Citizens Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 60.87%.

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.