May Hill Capital LLC Boosts Stake in Citigroup Inc. $C

May Hill Capital LLC lifted its stake in Citigroup Inc. (NYSE:C) by 105.2% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 11,590 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 5,941 shares during the period. May Hill Capital LLC’s holdings in Citigroup were worth $1,352,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the stock. Donaldson Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in Citigroup in the 3rd quarter worth $58,994,000. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC increased its stake in Citigroup by 17.3% in the 3rd quarter. Kovitz Investment Group Partners LLC now owns 663,416 shares of the company’s stock worth $67,337,000 after buying an additional 98,082 shares in the last quarter. Gunderson Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in Citigroup in the 4th quarter worth $7,165,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in Citigroup by 166.9% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 19,990 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,407,000 after buying an additional 12,499 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. increased its stake in Citigroup by 12.7% in the 3rd quarter. Adell Harriman & Carpenter Inc. now owns 102,255 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,379,000 after buying an additional 11,512 shares in the last quarter. 71.72% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Citigroup Stock Down 1.1%

Shares of NYSE:C opened at $123.39 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.99, a quick ratio of 0.99 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.59. Citigroup Inc. has a 12 month low of $71.65 and a 12 month high of $135.29. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $119.50 and a 200 day moving average price of $114.04. The company has a market cap of $210.46 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.29, a PEG ratio of 0.55 and a beta of 1.14.

Citigroup (NYSE:C) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 14th. The company reported $3.06 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.63 by $0.43. The firm had revenue of $24.63 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.96 billion. Citigroup had a net margin of 9.35% and a return on equity of 9.19%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 14.1% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $1.96 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Citigroup Inc. will post 10.65 earnings per share for the current year.

Citigroup Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Shareholders of record on Monday, May 4th will be paid a $0.60 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Monday, May 4th. This represents a $2.40 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.9%. Citigroup’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 29.74%.

Citigroup announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock buyback program on Thursday, May 7th that permits the company to repurchase $30.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 13.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are typically an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its shares are undervalued.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on Citigroup from $160.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 29th. Evercore set a $139.00 price target on Citigroup in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Zacks Research lowered Citigroup from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Barclays increased their price target on Citigroup from $146.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 15th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on Citigroup from $131.00 to $135.50 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have issued a Buy rating and five have given a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $137.62.

Insider Activity

In other Citigroup news, Director John Cunningham Dugan sold 2,117 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, May 8th. The shares were sold at an average price of $125.30, for a total value of $265,260.10. Following the completion of the sale, the director owned 12,194 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $1,527,908.20. This trade represents a 14.79% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, insider Edward Skyler sold 25,000 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, April 15th. The stock was sold at an average price of $131.41, for a total transaction of $3,285,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 182,022 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $23,919,511.02. The trade was a 12.08% decrease in their position. Additional details regarding this sale are available in the official SEC disclosure. 0.11% of the stock is owned by company insiders.

Trending Headlines about Citigroup

Here are the key news stories impacting Citigroup this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup plans to increase headcount in its Asia-Pacific prime brokerage business by about 10%, signaling confidence in rising hedge fund activity and an opportunity to capture more trading and financing revenue. Article: C to Expand Asia Prime Brokerage Team by 10%, Eyes Hedge Fund Growth
• Positive Sentiment: Separate reports suggest Citigroup is continuing to push its Asia expansion strategy, including potential licensing progress in China and a broader push to strengthen its regional investment-banking and markets presence. Article: Citigroup to Get License for Wholly Owned China Securities Firm as CEO Joins Trump Visit
• Positive Sentiment: Citigroup has also been highlighted in analysis for adopting AI in ways that may generate returns, reinforcing the view that the bank’s technology investments could help support efficiency and profitability. Article: Citigroup: Not Only Adopting AI But Also Generating Returns
• Neutral Sentiment: Bloomberg reported that Citi said African borrowers are becoming more creative in debt sales, which is informative on market conditions but does not clearly change the near-term earnings picture. Article: Citi Says African Borrowers Are Turning Creative on Debt Sales
• Negative Sentiment: Some investors remain focused on whether Citigroup can sustain its post-earnings momentum, with recent commentary noting the stock has already pulled back from the strong rally seen after its latest quarterly results. Article: After a 63.3% Surge in a Year, Is C Stock Worth Holding on to Now?

Citigroup Profile

Citigroup Inc is a global financial services company headquartered in New York City with roots tracing back to the City Bank of New York, founded in 1812. The modern Citigroup was created through the 1998 merger of Citicorp and Travelers Group and has since operated as a diversified bank holding company that provides a broad range of banking and financial products and services to consumers, corporations, governments and institutions worldwide.

Citi’s principal businesses include retail and commercial banking, credit card and consumer lending products, wealth management and private banking, and a full suite of institutional services.