Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. Buys 19,842 Shares of Citigroup Inc. $C

Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. raised its stake in shares of Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) by 3.0% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 689,775 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 19,842 shares during the quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co.’s holdings in Citigroup were worth $81,155,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its position in Citigroup by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 163,239,926 shares of the company’s stock valued at $19,048,467,000 after acquiring an additional 4,938,923 shares in the last quarter. Capital World Investors boosted its position in Citigroup by 6.5% during the 3rd quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 47,262,626 shares of the company’s stock valued at $4,797,292,000 after acquiring an additional 2,871,074 shares in the last quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC boosted its position in Citigroup by 2.7% during the 3rd quarter. Fisher Asset Management LLC now owns 33,040,513 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,353,612,000 after acquiring an additional 879,056 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in Citigroup by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 32,870,559 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,336,362,000 after acquiring an additional 580,027 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its position in Citigroup by 17.6% during the 3rd quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 28,125,995 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,854,788,000 after acquiring an additional 4,211,099 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 71.72% of the company’s stock.

Citigroup Stock Down 0.0%

Citigroup stock opened at $123.39 on Monday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $210.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.29, a PEG ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.14. Citigroup Inc. has a 1-year low of $71.65 and a 1-year high of $135.29. The business has a fifty day moving average price of $119.50 and a 200-day moving average price of $114.13.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $3.06 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.43. The company had revenue of $24.63 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.96 billion. Citigroup had a return on equity of 9.19% and a net margin of 9.35%.The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 14.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.96 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.65 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citigroup declared that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback plan on Thursday, May 7th that allows the company to repurchase $30.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization allows the company to reacquire up to 13.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s leadership believes its shares are undervalued.

Citigroup Announces Dividend

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

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Edward Skyler sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.41, for a total value of $3,285,250.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider owned 182,022 shares in the company, valued at $23,919,511.02. This trade represents a 12.08% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, Director John Cunningham Dugan sold 2,117 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Friday, May 8th. The stock was sold at an average price of $125.30, for a total value of $265,260.10. Following the completion of the transaction, the director owned 12,194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,527,908.20. This trade represents a 14.79% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Company insiders own 0.11% of the company’s stock.

Citigroup News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup plans to increase headcount in its Asia-Pacific prime brokerage business by about 10%, signaling confidence in rising hedge fund activity and an opportunity to capture more trading and financing revenue. Article: C to Expand Asia Prime Brokerage Team by 10%, Eyes Hedge Fund Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Separate reports suggest Citigroup is continuing to push its Asia expansion strategy, including potential licensing progress in China and a broader push to strengthen its regional investment-banking and markets presence. Article: Citigroup to Get License for Wholly Owned China Securities Firm as CEO Joins Trump Visit
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup has also been highlighted in analysis for adopting AI in ways that may generate returns, reinforcing the view that the bank’s technology investments could help support efficiency and profitability. Article: Citigroup: Not Only Adopting AI But Also Generating Returns
• Neutral Sentiment: Bloomberg reported that Citi said African borrowers are becoming more creative in debt sales, which is informative on market conditions but does not clearly change the near-term earnings picture. Article: Citi Says African Borrowers Are Turning Creative on Debt Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors remain focused on whether Citigroup can sustain its post-earnings momentum, with recent commentary noting the stock has already pulled back from the strong rally seen after its latest quarterly results. Article: After a 63.3% Surge in a Year, Is C Stock Worth Holding on to Now?

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on C. Wall Street Zen raised Citigroup from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on Citigroup from $160.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on Citigroup from $140.00 to $144.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. Jefferies Financial Group initiated coverage on Citigroup in a research report on Thursday, March 26th. They issued a “buy” rating and a $135.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Piper Sandler reissued an “overweight” rating and issued a $145.00 price objective (up from $125.00) on shares of Citigroup in a research report on Wednesday, April 15th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Buy rating and five have assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, Citigroup has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $137.62.

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.