Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) Shares Gap Up After Dividend Announcement

Shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) gapped up prior to trading on Wednesday following a dividend announcement from the company. The stock had previously closed at $32.41, but opened at $33.28. Citizens Financial Group shares last traded at $33.28, with a volume of 4,663,974 shares changing hands.

The newly announced dividend which will be paid on Wednesday, May 15th. Shareholders of record on Wednesday, May 1st will be issued a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.94%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have weighed in on CFG shares. Barclays downgraded shares of Citizens Financial Group from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and increased their price target for the company from $38.00 to $40.00 in a report on Tuesday, January 2nd. Wedbush reduced their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $38.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Evercore ISI increased 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. StockNews.com cut shares of Citizens Financial Group from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research note on Tuesday, March 5th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased 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. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $36.29.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Up 3.3 %

The firm has a market cap of $15.58 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 11.82 and a beta of 1.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.88 and a current ratio of 0.87. The business’s 50-day moving average is $33.28 and its 200-day moving average is $30.58.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 17th. The bank reported $0.65 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.75 by ($0.10). The company had revenue of $1.96 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.96 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 11.52% and a return on equity of 6.62%. The company’s revenue was down 7.9% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.00 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.25 EPS for the current year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Citizens Financial Group

In other news, insider Craig Jack Read sold 4,508 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $33.54, for a total value of $151,198.32. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 43,885 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,471,902.90. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.62% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of CFG. Resurgent Financial Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Groupama Asset Managment acquired a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Clear Street Markets LLC raised its holdings 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 during the period. Lindbrook Capital LLC raised its holdings 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 during the period. Finally, Larson Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 94.90% of the company’s stock.

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.