Swedbank AB Has $126.38 Million Holdings in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG

Swedbank AB lifted its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 23.6% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,107,414 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 402,845 shares during the period. Swedbank AB owned approximately 0.50% of Citizens Financial Group worth $126,382,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the 4th quarter worth about $355,909,000. AQR Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 56.9% in the 4th quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 7,722,559 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $451,075,000 after purchasing an additional 2,799,050 shares during the period. Victory Capital Management Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 89.4% in the fourth quarter. Victory Capital Management Inc. now owns 4,731,592 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $276,372,000 after purchasing an additional 2,232,806 shares in the last quarter. Amundi lifted its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 136.4% in the fourth quarter. Amundi now owns 3,513,388 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $205,217,000 after purchasing an additional 2,027,255 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Capital International Investors boosted its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 32.3% during the fourth quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 8,000,750 shares of the bank’s stock worth $467,389,000 after buying an additional 1,953,372 shares during the period. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Insider Activity at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, insider Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, May 12th. The stock was sold at an average price of $62.16, for a total transaction of $376,068.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 22,565 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,402,640.40. The trade was a 21.14% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

CFG has been the subject of a number of research reports. Citigroup lowered Citizens Financial Group from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday. DA Davidson upped their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $73.00 to $74.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $67.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Cantor Fitzgerald reiterated an “overweight” rating on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Tuesday, June 9th. Finally, Morgan Stanley boosted their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $73.00 to $79.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, June 29th. Sixteen analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $74.35.

Key Stories Impacting Citizens Financial Group

Here are the key news stories impacting Citizens Financial Group this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS Group raised its price target on Citizens Financial Group (CFG) to $82 from $75 and kept a buy rating, implying meaningful upside from recent trading levels. Citizens Financial Group had its price target raised by UBS Group AG from $75.00 to $82.00. They now have a “buy” rating on the stock.
• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan also lifted its target on CFG to $76 from $68.50 and maintained an overweight rating, reinforcing a constructive view on the bank’s valuation. Citizens Financial Group had its price target raised by JPMorgan Chase & Co. from $68.50 to $76.00. They now have an “overweight” rating on the stock.
• Neutral Sentiment: Citizens Financial Group announced that CEO Bruce Van Saun will speak at the Barclays Global Financial Services Conference in September, which is a routine investor-relations event and does not by itself change fundamentals. Citizens Financial Group to Participate at the Barclays 24th Annual Global Financial Services Conference.
• Neutral Sentiment: Robert W. Baird reaffirmed a neutral rating and set a $72 target, suggesting the shares are fairly valued near current levels. Citizens Financial Group had its “neutral” rating reaffirmed by Robert W. Baird.
• Neutral Sentiment: A separate head-to-head review comparing CFG with Peoples Financial Services is mainly informational and unlikely to materially affect the stock price. Peoples Financial Services (NASDAQ:PFIS) & Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) Head-To-Head Review.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Down 0.4%

Citizens Financial Group stock opened at $71.81 on Wednesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.51, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.84. The company’s 50-day moving average is $65.42 and its 200-day moving average is $62.98. The firm has a market capitalization of $30.37 billion, a PE ratio of 16.98, a P/E/G ratio of 0.57 and a beta of 0.67. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $45.90 and a fifty-two week high of $72.94.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.10 by $0.03. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 16.21% and a return on equity of 8.31%. The business had revenue of $2.17 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.77 EPS. Citizens Financial Group’s revenue was up 12.0% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.21 earnings per share for the current year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, May 14th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, April 30th were given a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, April 30th. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 43.50%.

About Citizens Financial Group

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.