Brokerages Set Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) Target Price at $69.95

Shares of Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) have been given a consensus recommendation of “Moderate Buy” by the twenty-one analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat.com reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a hold recommendation and twenty have issued a buy recommendation on the company. The average 1 year price objective among analysts that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $69.9545.

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on CFG shares. Jefferies Financial Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Wednesday, January 21st. Barclays set a $77.00 price target on Citizens Financial Group and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Monday, January 5th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $68.00 to $70.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, January 22nd. Citigroup boosted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $65.00 to $71.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Monday, January 26th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $73.00 price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Tuesday, January 6th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, insider Susan Lamonica sold 13,258 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, March 11th. The shares were sold at an average price of $58.04, for a total transaction of $769,494.32. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 165,971 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,632,956.84. This trade represents a 7.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of CFG. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. raised its holdings in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. Rockefeller Capital Management L.P. now owns 64,323 shares of the bank’s stock worth $3,757,000 after purchasing an additional 220 shares during the period. Fund Advisors of America Inc FL bought a new position in Citizens Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at $426,000. World Investment Advisors grew its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 87.2% during the fourth quarter. World Investment Advisors now owns 15,338 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $896,000 after purchasing an additional 7,143 shares during the period. Corient Private Wealth LLC increased its position in Citizens Financial Group by 16.3% in the fourth quarter. Corient Private Wealth LLC now owns 106,846 shares of the bank’s stock worth $6,241,000 after buying an additional 14,965 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. 94.90% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Citizens Financial Group Stock Down 0.2%

CFG opened at $56.94 on Friday. Citizens Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $32.60 and a fifty-two week high of $68.79. The firm has a market capitalization of $24.20 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.71, a PEG ratio of 0.46 and a beta of 0.70. The company’s 50-day moving average is $61.97 and its 200 day moving average is $56.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.84.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, January 21st. The bank reported $1.13 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.11 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $2.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.16 billion. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 15.19% and a return on equity of 7.81%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.85 EPS. Research analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group will post 3.92 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Wednesday, February 18th. Investors of record on Wednesday, February 4th were issued a $0.46 dividend. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.2%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Wednesday, February 4th. Citizens Financial Group’s payout ratio is 47.55%.

Citizens Financial Group Company Profile

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.