Citizens (NYSE:CIA) Upgraded at StockNews.com

Citizens (NYSE:CIA) was upgraded by analysts at StockNews.com from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note issued on Wednesday.

Citizens Stock Up 1.7 %

Citizens stock opened at $4.27 on Wednesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $4.76 and a 200 day moving average price of $4.59. The company has a market capitalization of $213.15 million, a price-to-earnings ratio of 9.93 and a beta of 0.26. Citizens has a 52 week low of $1.85 and a 52 week high of $5.95.

Citizens (NYSE:CIA) last released its earnings results on Thursday, March 13th. The insurance provider reported $0.07 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.10 by ($0.03). Citizens had a return on equity of 11.50% and a net margin of 8.87%. The business had revenue of $63.47 million for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $64.66 million. Research analysts anticipate that Citizens will post 0.32 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Insider Buying and Selling at Citizens

In other news, CEO Jon Stenberg bought 106,340 shares of Citizens stock in a transaction dated Monday, April 7th. The stock was acquired at an average cost of $3.89 per share, with a total value of $413,662.60. Following the acquisition, the chief executive officer now owns 124,363 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $483,772.07. This trade represents a 590.02 % increase in their ownership of the stock. The acquisition was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. 1.20% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Citizens

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. grew its holdings in Citizens by 9.4% in the 4th quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc. now owns 36,976 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $148,000 after buying an additional 3,176 shares during the period. Alpine Global Management LLC purchased a new stake in Citizens during the 4th quarter worth $41,000. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp acquired a new position in Citizens during the 4th quarter worth approximately $63,000. Millennium Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of Citizens by 49.2% in the fourth quarter. Millennium Management LLC now owns 202,347 shares of the insurance provider’s stock valued at $811,000 after purchasing an additional 66,718 shares during the period. Finally, Bridgeway Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in Citizens by 0.8% in the 4th quarter. Bridgeway Capital Management LLC now owns 427,347 shares of the insurance provider’s stock worth $1,714,000 after buying an additional 3,235 shares in the last quarter. 13.73% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Citizens Company Profile

Citizens, Inc provides life insurance products in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Life Insurance and Home Service Insurance. The Life Insurance segment issues ordinary whole life insurance and endowment policies in the United States dollar-denominated amounts to non-U.S.