Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG – Get Free Report) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of April. As of April 15th, there was short interest totaling 15,538,405 shares, an increase of 19.1% from the March 31st total of 13,048,547 shares. Currently, 3.7% of the company’s shares are sold short. Based on an average daily volume of 4,305,155 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 3.6 days.
Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades
CFG has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. New Street Research set a $73.00 price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Robert W. Baird upgraded shares of Citizens Financial Group from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $65.00 price objective on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 9th. Raymond James Financial cut Citizens Financial Group from a “strong-buy” rating to an “outperform” rating and increased their price objective for the stock from $62.00 to $66.00 in a report on Wednesday, January 7th. Jefferies Financial Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. Finally, Barclays set a $77.00 price objective on Citizens Financial Group and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 5th. Nineteen research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Citizens Financial Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $70.88.
Get Our Latest Analysis on Citizens Financial Group
Citizens Financial Group Stock Down 0.9%
Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $2.17 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a return on equity of 8.31% and a net margin of 16.21%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 12.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $0.77 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group will post 5.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.
Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement
The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th will be given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 43.50%.
Insider Buying and Selling at Citizens Financial Group
In other news, insider Susan Lamonica sold 13,258 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 11th. The stock was sold at an average price of $58.04, for a total transaction of $769,494.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 165,971 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,632,956.84. This represents a 7.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which can be accessed through this hyperlink. Company insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.
Institutional Investors Weigh In On Citizens Financial Group
A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2.9% during the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 6,078 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $355,000 after buying an additional 172 shares during the last quarter. AA Financial Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. AA Financial Advisors LLC now owns 4,657 shares of the bank’s stock worth $272,000 after purchasing an additional 174 shares during the last quarter. Inscription Capital LLC raised its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 1.6% in the fourth quarter. Inscription Capital LLC now owns 10,902 shares of the bank’s stock worth $637,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC now owns 19,694 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,150,000 after purchasing an additional 175 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Grove Bank & Trust raised its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 19.8% in the fourth quarter. Grove Bank & Trust now owns 1,107 shares of the bank’s stock worth $65,000 after purchasing an additional 183 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 94.90% of the company’s stock.
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.
See Also
Receive News & Ratings for Citizens Financial Group Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Citizens Financial Group and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
