Brokerages Set Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) Price Target at $78.55

Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) has been assigned a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” from the twenty analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seventeen have issued a buy rating on the company. The average 12-month target price among analysts that have covered the stock in the last year is $78.55.

A number of research firms recently issued reports on CFG. Evercore reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a report on Monday, July 6th. Cantor Fitzgerald upped their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $80.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Wednesday, July 15th. Royal Bank Of Canada increased their price target on Citizens Financial Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research report on Friday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price objective on Citizens Financial Group from $73.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Monday, June 29th. Finally, Barclays upped their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $77.00 to $81.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th.

Citizens Financial Group Trading Up 0.0%

Shares of CFG stock opened at $71.80 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a current ratio of 0.86. The stock has a market capitalization of $30.36 billion, a P/E ratio of 15.58, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 0.67. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $67.48 and a 200 day moving average price of $64.05. Citizens Financial Group has a fifty-two week low of $45.90 and a fifty-two week high of $74.70.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The bank reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.25 by $0.05. Citizens Financial Group had a net margin of 17.18% and a return on equity of 8.85%. The company had revenue of $2.28 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.25 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $0.92 EPS. The firm’s revenue was up 12.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Citizens Financial Group will post 5.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 30th will be issued 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 is Thursday, July 30th. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 39.91%.

Insider Activity

In other news, insider Michelle Moosally sold 6,050 shares of Citizens Financial Group stock in a transaction on Tuesday, May 12th. The shares were sold at an average price of $62.16, for a total transaction of $376,068.00. Following the completion of the sale, 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 document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.67% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Citizens Financial Group

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. NewEdge Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 2.4% during the 1st quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 11,531 shares of the bank’s stock worth $472,000 after acquiring an additional 274 shares in the last quarter. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 6.7% in the first quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 8,838 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $362,000 after purchasing an additional 554 shares in the last quarter. Woodline Partners LP increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 39.5% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 36,932 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $1,513,000 after purchasing an additional 10,466 shares during the last quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC increased its stake in Citizens Financial Group by 93.4% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 9,814 shares of the bank’s stock valued at $439,000 after purchasing an additional 4,739 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Daiwa Securities Group Inc. raised its holdings in Citizens Financial Group by 5.2% during the second quarter. Daiwa Securities Group Inc. now owns 65,564 shares of the bank’s stock worth $2,934,000 after purchasing an additional 3,225 shares in the last quarter. 94.90% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.