Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. Cuts Stock Position in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Harvest Portfolios Group Inc. cut its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 13.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 123,570 shares of the bank’s stock after selling 19,291 shares during the period. Harvest Portfolios Group Inc.’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $6,569,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of CFG. WealthTrust Asset Management LLC purchased a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the third quarter worth about $891,000. Erste Asset Management GmbH boosted its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 14.6% in the third quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH now owns 93,740 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $5,029,000 after buying an additional 11,963 shares in the last quarter. DNB Asset Management AS grew its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 9.6% during the third quarter. DNB Asset Management AS now owns 82,541 shares of the bank’s stock worth $4,388,000 after acquiring an additional 7,222 shares during the period. Choreo LLC grew its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 106.3% during the third quarter. Choreo LLC now owns 28,293 shares of the bank’s stock worth $1,504,000 after acquiring an additional 14,580 shares during the period. Finally, Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 874,192 shares of the bank’s stock worth $46,472,000 after purchasing an additional 17,988 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Down 5.9%

Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $60.07 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $25.53 billion, a PE ratio of 15.52, a P/E/G ratio of 0.52 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.84 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $62.54 and a 200 day moving average price of $55.93. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 52 week low of $32.60 and a 52 week high of $68.79.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, January 21st. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.11 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $2.16 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.16 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 15.19% and a return on equity of 7.81%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company earned $0.85 EPS. Equities research analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 18th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, February 4th were given a $0.46 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 4th. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.1%. Citizens Financial Group’s payout ratio is currently 47.55%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have issued reports on CFG. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods increased their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Jefferies Financial Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $80.00 price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Wednesday, January 21st. New Street Research set a $73.00 target price on Citizens Financial Group in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and set a $73.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th. Finally, Morgan Stanley increased their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $71.00 to $73.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, January 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, eighteen have issued a Buy rating and two have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $68.77.

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.