Independent Advisor Alliance Cuts Holdings in Citigroup Inc. $C

Independent Advisor Alliance trimmed its holdings in shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) by 9.5% during the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The firm owned 74,618 shares of the company’s stock after selling 7,843 shares during the quarter. Independent Advisor Alliance’s holdings in Citigroup were worth $8,707,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Donaldson Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of Citigroup in the 3rd quarter worth $58,994,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC boosted its stake in shares of Citigroup by 17.3% in the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 663,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,337,000 after buying an additional 98,082 shares during the last quarter. Gunderson Capital Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of Citigroup in the 4th quarter worth $7,165,000. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its stake in shares of Citigroup by 166.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,990 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,407,000 after buying an additional 12,499 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. boosted its stake in shares of Citigroup by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. now owns 102,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,379,000 after buying an additional 11,512 shares during the last quarter. 71.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citigroup Price Performance

Shares of Citigroup stock opened at $126.32 on Wednesday. Citigroup Inc. has a one year low of $71.65 and a one year high of $135.29. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $118.72 and its 200 day moving average is $113.60. The stock has a market cap of $215.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.65, a P/E/G ratio of 0.56 and a beta of 1.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a current ratio of 0.99.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.43. Citigroup had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 9.35%.The company had revenue of $24.63 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.96 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.96 EPS. Citigroup’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Citigroup Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Monday, May 4th will be issued a $0.60 dividend. This represents a $2.40 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.9%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 4th. Citigroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 29.74%.

Citigroup announced that its board has approved a share buyback plan on Thursday, May 7th that allows the company to buyback $30.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to purchase up to 13.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Citigroup News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts said Citigroup’s strong earnings, excess capital, and active buybacks are supporting a robust capital return strategy, which is positive for shareholder value. What’s Fueling Citigroup’s Robust Capital Return Strategy?
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup’s recent earnings report beat expectations on both profit and revenue, helping support investor confidence in the bank’s operating momentum.
• Neutral Sentiment: Citigroup disclosed routine participation notifications and a director stock sale, but neither item appears large enough to materially change the long-term investment thesis. SEC Director Sale Filing
• Neutral Sentiment: Citi strategists’ market commentary on US equities and the Kospi index reflects the firm’s broader research activity, but it is not a direct catalyst for Citigroup shares. Citi’s Manthey Says US Stock Outperformance Has Further to Run
• Negative Sentiment: Director John Cunningham Dugan sold 2,117 shares, a modest insider sale that could slightly weigh on sentiment even though the amount is not especially large.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

C has been the topic of a number of research reports. Barclays raised their price target on Citigroup from $146.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $139.00 price target on shares of Citigroup in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on Citigroup from $137.00 to $151.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “buy (b)” rating on shares of Citigroup in a report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, UBS Group reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and issued a $132.00 target price on shares of Citigroup in a report on Thursday, January 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Citigroup currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $137.62.

Insider Buying and Selling at Citigroup

In other Citigroup news, insider Edward Skyler sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.41, for a total transaction of $3,285,250.00. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 182,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $23,919,511.02. This trade represents a 12.08% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Cantu Ernesto Torres sold 43,173 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, February 13th. The shares were sold at an average price of $111.09, for a total value of $4,796,088.57. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 45,835 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,091,810.15. This represents a 48.50% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The SEC filing for this sale provides additional information. Insiders have sold a total of 94,435 shares of company stock valued at $11,030,074 over the last ninety days. 0.11% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Citigroup Company Profile

Citigroup Inc is a global financial services company headquartered in New York City with roots tracing back to the City Bank of New York, founded in 1812. The modern Citigroup was created through the 1998 merger of Citicorp and Travelers Group and has since operated as a diversified bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial products and services to consumers, corporations, governments and institutions worldwide.

Citi’s principal businesses include retail and commercial banking, credit card and consumer lending products, wealth management and private banking, and a full suite of institutional services.