DNB Asset Management AS Grows Position in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG)

DNB Asset Management AS raised its holdings in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 17.0% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 77,984 shares of the bank’s stock after purchasing an additional 11,321 shares during the period. DNB Asset Management AS’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $2,810,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of CFG. Capital International Investors grew its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 4.4% in the 1st quarter. Capital International Investors now owns 36,709,412 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,332,185,000 after buying an additional 1,552,333 shares in the last quarter. LSV Asset Management raised its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 1.5% during the 4th quarter. LSV Asset Management now owns 6,504,591 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $215,562,000 after purchasing an additional 95,292 shares during the period. Nordea Investment Management AB lifted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 15.3% during the 1st quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 3,625,128 shares of the bank’s stock worth $130,722,000 after purchasing an additional 480,129 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group in the 4th quarter worth about $117,372,000. Finally, Hsbc Holdings PLC grew its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 96.3% during the 4th quarter. Hsbc Holdings PLC now owns 2,472,122 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $81,932,000 after buying an additional 1,212,642 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Price Performance

CFG traded up $0.55 during midday trading on Tuesday, hitting $38.85. The stock had a trading volume of 5,239,301 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,552,668. The company has a market cap of $17.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.46 and a beta of 1.10. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a 1 year low of $22.77 and a 1 year high of $43.96. The business has a fifty day moving average of $37.12 and a 200 day moving average of $35.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.60, a quick ratio of 0.86 and a current ratio of 0.87.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, July 17th. The bank reported $0.78 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.79 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $1.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $1.95 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 10.74% and a return on equity of 6.21%. Citizens Financial Group’s revenue for the quarter was down 6.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $0.92 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 3.24 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Wednesday, August 14th. Stockholders of record on Wednesday, July 31st will be paid a $0.42 dividend. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.32%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Wednesday, July 31st. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 60.87%.

Insider Activity at Citizens Financial Group

In other Citizens Financial Group news, insider Craig Jack Read sold 3,938 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, July 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $43.26, for a total value of $170,357.88. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 33,620 shares in the company, valued at $1,454,401.20. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.62% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the stock. StockNews.com upgraded shares of Citizens Financial Group from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Sunday, May 5th. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $43.00 to $49.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 18th. Citigroup upped their price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $39.00 to $43.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 19th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $41.00 to $50.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday. Finally, Wedbush reduced their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $38.00 to $35.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, April 18th. Ten research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $42.20.

Citizens Financial Group Company Profile

Citizens Financial Group, Inc operates as the bank holding company that provides retail and commercial banking products and services to individuals, small businesses, middle-market companies, corporations, and institutions in the United States. The company operates in two segments, Consumer Banking and Commercial Banking.