Citizens Financial Group, Inc. $CFG Position Boosted by Saudi Central Bank

Saudi Central Bank boosted its holdings in Citizens Financial Group, Inc. (NYSE:CFG) by 87.7% during the 2nd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 29,750 shares of the bank’s stock after acquiring an additional 13,897 shares during the quarter. Saudi Central Bank’s holdings in Citizens Financial Group were worth $2,085,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group by 319.8% in the second quarter. Elevation Wealth Partners LLC now owns 424 shares of the bank’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 323 shares in the last quarter. University of Texas Texas AM Investment Management Co. acquired a new position in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the fourth quarter valued at $26,000. Cedar Mountain Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the first quarter valued at about $27,000. Keating Financial Advisory Services Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Citizens Financial Group during the second quarter valued at about $35,000. Finally, Gunpowder Capital Management LLC dba Oliver Wealth Management acquired a new stake in Citizens Financial Group in the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Institutional investors own 94.90% of the company’s stock.

Citizens Financial Group Price Performance

Shares of NYSE CFG opened at $70.81 on Tuesday. Citizens Financial Group, Inc. has a twelve month low of $47.96 and a twelve month high of $75.33. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.63. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $71.49 and a two-hundred day moving average of $65.85. The company has a market capitalization of $29.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 15.36, a PEG ratio of 0.64 and a beta of 0.66.

Citizens Financial Group (NYSE:CFG) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 16th. The bank reported $1.30 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates 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 business had revenue of $2.28 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.25 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm earned $0.92 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 12.1% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts expect that Citizens Financial Group, Inc. will post 5.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Citizens Financial Group Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, August 13th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, July 30th were given a dividend of $0.46 per share. This represents a $1.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.6%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, July 30th. Citizens Financial Group’s dividend payout ratio is 39.91%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research firms have commented on CFG. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their target price on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $70.00 to $79.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, July 17th. Evercore reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $80.00 price target on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Monday, July 6th. UBS Group increased their price objective on shares of Citizens Financial Group from $75.00 to $82.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, July 7th. DA Davidson reiterated a “neutral” rating on shares of Citizens Financial Group in a research note on Friday, August 14th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on Citizens Financial Group from $85.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, July 16th. Sixteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and four have issued a Hold rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $79.25.

Insider Buying and Selling at Citizens Financial Group

In related news, CEO Bruce Van Saun sold 129,369 shares of Citizens Financial Group stock in a transaction on Friday, July 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $72.07, for a total value of $9,323,623.83. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer directly owned 1,140,763 shares in the company, valued at $82,214,789.41. The trade was a 10.19% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. 0.67% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Citizens Financial Group 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.